


Everything You Are

by awriterofthings



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-20
Updated: 2018-01-20
Packaged: 2019-03-07 00:56:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 67,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13423308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awriterofthings/pseuds/awriterofthings
Summary: Doctor au. Lexa is new to Ark Hospital and quickly becomes attracted to fellow doctor, Clarke Griffin, but unfortunately for her the trauma surgeon is not interested in a relationship. (A Grey’s Anatomy-esque fic because why not?) The medical stuff won't be completely accurate; I only know as much as Google tells me.





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Clarke exited her room tiredly, rubbing her eyes as she made her way into the kitchen. She was glad to see coffee already made and quickly poured herself a cup. She spotted her roommates in the living room peeking out the window and rolled her eyes as she opened the fridge to get coffee creamer. “What are you two doing?”

              Octavia glanced at the blonde. “Someone is moving in right across from us.”

              Raven turned to face her friend. “She’s hot. I’m thinking it’s time you get back out there into the headache that is the dating world.”

              “Raven’s right,” Octavia said as she moved to sit down on the couch. “You haven’t been with anyone since he-who-shall-not-be-named.”

              “You’re both ridiculous,” Clarke said as she moved to sit down across from Octavia. “I’m too busy to date… and I’m also just not interested in being with anyone.”

              Raven stared at Clarke for a beat before speaking as if she hadn’t heard anything the blonde had just said. “We should bake her welcome cookies. That’ll be a nice leeway into “do you want to bang my friend.”

              Clarke sighed and took a sip of her coffee. “What part of not interested did you not understand?”

              “All of it,” Raven replied. “Seriously, Clarke. You need to go look out that window.”

              Clarke looked to her more sensible friend, but Octavia only nodded in agreement. Rolling her eyes, Clarke set her coffee down and headed over to the window. She pulled the curtain back slightly and looked down to the street below. She immediately spotted a young woman standing by a U-haul truck as she took long gulps from her water bottle. Clarke couldn’t deny it, the woman was gorgeous. Clarke hadn’t realized that she had pushed the curtain back even further until she saw the brunette below smirking as she looked back at her. “Shit.” Clarke closed the curtain and quickly moved back to the couch. “I think she saw me.”

              “Good,” Octavia replied. “She knows you exist. You are now on her radar.”

              “No, not good. She probably thinks I’m a creep. Besides, I don’t want to be on anyone’s radar.”

              Raven looked at Clarke in disbelief. “Why not? You did see her, right?”

              “Yes, and she is very attractive but that doesn’t change my stance on things. I’m focusing on my career and that’s it.”

              Raven rolled her eyes. “You need to focus on getting laid. Maybe then you’ll be less cranky.”

              Clarke glared at her friend over the rim of her coffee cup. “I’m not cranky. I’m devoted to my career.”

              “Which is making you cranky,” Octavia pointed out. “You need more out of life than just working.”

              “I go out,” Clarke protested.

              “Grocery shopping does not count,” Raven stated.

              Clarke picked up a throw pillow from the couch and flung it at the girl. “You’re an ass.” She got up from the couch and headed into the kitchen to set her empty mug in the sink. “I’m getting ready for work.”

              A knock on the door stopped Clarke in her steps. She looked to her roommates, who simply shrugged. Clarke made her way over to the door and looked through the peephole. She turned around suddenly with wide eyes. “It’s her!” She whispered loudly.

              “Who?” Raven asked, confused.

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “The hot new neighbor!”

              “Well open it and see what she wants,” Octavia urged.

              Clarke ran a hand through her hair to help tame it before opening the door. The brunette really was drop dead gorgeous. “Um, hi.”

              The stranger smiled. “Hi, really sorry about this but would it be possible for me to borrow a pair of scissors, a knife or anything sharp?”

              Clarke quirked a brow in amusement. “Are you about to commit murder?”

              Lexa laughed lightly. “I need to open a few boxes and don’t have anything to do it with.”

              “One second.” Clarke closed the door back and headed into the kitchen.             

              “Dude,” Raven whispered as she got up, making her way towards Clarke. “She’s totally lying.”

              Clarke frowned as she grabbed a knife from the utensil drawer. “You think she’s about to kill someone?”

              Raven rolled her eyes. “No. She could’ve easily used her keys to open boxes. She saw you staring and thinks you’re cute so she here she is.”

              Clarke pointed the knife at Raven. “You have an overactive imagination.” She made her way back to the door and opened it. “Here you go.”

              “Thank you.” Lexa took the knife. “I’ll bring it back as soon as I can. Also, the name’s Lexa. It’s less of a mouthful than “the hot new neighbor.” She smiled at Clarke’s look of horror before heading back across the hall and into her apartment.

              “Great,” Clarke sighed as she closed the door. “Now she really thinks I’m a creep.”

              “Stop being overdramatic,” Octavia said. “Now you’re definitely on her radar. This is a good thing.”

              “I’m going to go take a shower,” Clarke replied. “Stop trying to set me up with random people.”

              Before Clarke could make her way to the bathroom, she was interrupted but this time by the sound of a pager. She looked over at her roommates who both grabbed their pagers from the coffee table.

              “It’s me,” Raven assured her.  

              Clarke let out a breath of relief but then another page went off.

              “Not me,” Octavia said.

              “Awesome,” Clarke said, sarcastically as she quickly made her way into her room to look at the page.

              Octavia’s pager went off next and she glanced at it before getting up. “Something big must’ve happened. Let’s go save some lives.”

             

 

 

              Apparently that something big was a massive car pileup. Clarke was currently in the ER trying to keep order. She watched as a woman was wheeled in on a gurney and made her way over to the EMTs.

              “Shannon Robertson, forty-five. She has a mild concussion but claims she feels fine,” one of the EMTs explained.

              “I do feel fine,” the woman insisted as she was transferred by the EMTs from the gurney onto a bed.

              “Hi, Ms. Robertson,” Clarke smiled. “I’m Doctor Griffin. I just want to check you out to make sure you really are fine, okay?” Before she could do anything, more gurneys were rolled in with patients in worse shape. “Monty,” Clarke called to one of the residents as she scribbled on a clipboard.

              Monty rushed over and looked eagerly at Clarke. “Yes, Doctor Griffin?”

              “Get Ms. Robertson a head CT.” Clarke handed him the clipboard before moving on to the next patient. As she got started on trying to keep the man alive long enough to make it to an operating room, she heard another resident, Jasper, calling to her. “Doctor Griffin, we’ve got trauma to the airway here!”

              “You need to intubate!” Clarke yelled to him, keeping her focus on keeping the unconscious man in front of her alive.

              “Can’t! There’s too much trauma to the face!”

              Lexa entered the chaotic ER in time to hear the issue. She grabbed a pair of gloves from the nurses’ station and pulled them on as she made her way over to the lanky doctor. “Get me a ten-blade,” she said to Jasper as she shouldered him out of the way.

              Jasper frowned. “Who are you?”

              Lexa wiped the patient’s neck with betadine where she planned to make the incision. “Doctor Woods. Scalpel, now.”

              Jasper handed the woman a scalpel and watched as she pressed it to the patient’s neck, making a small vertical incision. He then watched in awe as she carefully pushed a hemostat into the cricothyroid membrane before spreading it so she could push a tube into his neck. “That’ll buy him some time but he needs to get to an OR,” she said as she secured the tube with tape. “I better get into some scrubs,” she said as she pulled her gloves off.

              Jasper continued to watch in awe as the doctor tossed the gloves into a biohazard chute before rushing away to find the locker room.

               Clarke rushed over to Jasper and was surprised to see that the resident had performed a crike. “You performed a cricotdhyrotomy? Have you ever done one before?” She chastised.

              Jasper quickly shook his head. “No, there was this doctor. She said her name was Doctor Woods. She did the crike and ran off.”

              Clarke frowned. “Who the hell is Doctor Woods?”

              Jasper shrugged. “No idea.”

              Clarke waved him off. “Forget it. Page Doctor Griffin.”

              “Your mom?” Jasper asked.

              Clarke looked at the man in disbelief. “I’m not talking about myself.”

              “Right,” Jasper said before quickly walking away to page the other Doctor Griffin.

 

 

 

Two hours later…

              Things had quieted down and Clarke was currently looking for one of her patients, confused about where she had gone. “Monty,” she said as she approached the resident in the hall. “Was Shannon Robertson discharged?”

              “She’s in recovery,” Monty replied.

              Clarke frowned. “What is she recovering from exactly?”

              “Uh… surgery,” Monty replied, hoping he wasn’t about to get into trouble. “Her lung collapsed. Doctor Woods performed a-,”

              “Who the hell is this Woods person?” Clarke asked.

              Monty shrugged. “I don’t know. She came out of nowhere.”

              “You don’t know who she is but she was able to operate on a patient?” Clarke asked in exasperation.

              “I saw the accident on the news. Figured an extra set of hands wouldn’t hurt.”

              Clarke turned around at the voice and her eyes widened at the sight of Lexa. “You’re a doctor?”

              Lexa nodded once. “I’m supposed to start tomorrow… officially.”

              Clarke remembered her mother mentioning to her that Thelonious, the Chief of Surgery, had convinced a doctor from DC to transfer. “You’re the new cardiothoracic surgeon?”

              “That would be me,” Lexa confirmed. “And you are?”

              “Clarke Griffin, trauma surgeon.”

              “In that case, you’re welcome.”

              Clarke frowned. “And what am I thanking you for?”

              “Doing your job. That ER was chaotic even for an ER.”

              Clarke clenched her jaw. “I was doing the best that I can. We’re short-staffed on nurses and the other trauma attending was stuck in a surgery.”

              Monty gestured behind him. “I, uh, better go check on patients,” he said before quickly walking away from the two.

              Abigail Griffin approached the two women with a smile. “Doctor Woods, thanks again for showing up to help. It’s really appreciated. And I see you’ve met my daughter.”

              Lexa smiled. “I have. We’re neighbors, actually.”

               Before Abby could reply, her pager went off. “I better get going. We’ll talk more later. Clarke can show you around the hospital,” she said before taking off down the hall.

              Lexa looked at Clarke expectantly but the blonde simply rolled her eyes. There was no way she was showing Lexa around after she had insulted her. “I’m not a tour guide.”

              “Fair enough,” Lexa said, simply. “No tour.”

              “I better go check on my patients,” Clarke said.

              “And I better go find the Chief of Surgery,” Lexa replied. “I will see you around, Doctor Griffin.”

              Clarke walked off without a word, hoping that she would be able to avoid the rude brunette even though they worked together and lived in the same apartment building.

             


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

              Raven and Octavia were sitting in the cafeteria with Clarke as the blonde told them about what had happened that morning with Ark Hospital’s newest doctor. “I was busting my ass in that ER,” Clarke huffed. “I don’t need some new doctor coming here claiming to have been doing my job.”

              “Maybe you just misunderstood what she was saying.” Clarke gave Octavia an incredulous look causing the brunette to quickly add, “or not.”

              “My mom won’t stop talking about her,” Clarke continued. “Apparently she was a great doctor back at Grounder Medical.”

              Raven chuckled. “I always thought that was a weird name for a hospital. Sounds like death and despair.”

              “Focus,” Clarke sighed.

              “Right,” Raven nodded. “Woods is a jerk. Continue.”             

              “I can already tell she thinks she’s better than everyone,” Clarke ranted. “I can’t believe I have to live across from her _and_ work with her.”

              “You don’t have to like her to sleep with her,” Octavia stated. “She’s really hot.”

              "Yeah," Raven jumped in. "You can definitely still get on top of that."

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “I was never planning to sleep with Doctor Woods.”

              “That’s a shame,” Raven replied. “You need to get laid and Lexa would’ve been a perfect candidate.”

              “Can you both get your minds out of the gutter?” Clarke asked in exasperation.

              “She might end up being my attending,” Octavia said, excitedly. “I’ve finally decided on a specialty.”

              “It’s about time,” Raven said to the surgical resident. “I thought for a moment you’d choose general surgery just out of default.”

              “Hey, general surgery is great,” Octavia said. “Wells is a great teacher. I’m just ready for something more.”

              “So cardiothoracic surgery?” Clarke asked.

              Octavia nodded. “Yep, I’m thinking that’s where I want to be.”

              “You’d be better off with my mother as an attending. Lexa doesn’t seem like the teaching type.”

              “You’ve had one bad interaction with her,” Octavia said. “You can’t condemn her for that.” She spotted Lexa walking their way and grinned. “She’s heading this way.”

              Clarke frowned. “She as in-,”

              “Doctor Griffin.” Lexa stood on the side Raven and Octavia were sitting at and looked down at Clarke. “May I have a word?”

              Clarke stood up from the table. “I was actually just about to head back to the ER.”

              “I’ll walk with you,” Lexa offered.

              Clarke rolled her eyes, waving goodbye to her friends before making her way out of the cafeteria. “Why? To make sure I can manage to get there on my own?”

              “No, I think we got off to a bad start and wanted to try again,” Lexa admitted. “I didn’t mean to offend you early. I’m just used to how things are run at GM.”

              “And how are things run there?” Clarke asked, feeling like she would regret asking.

              “In a more organized fashion,” Lexa answered, simply.

              Clarke pursed her lips as she turned down the hall. She took a deep breath before responding. “Are you trying to apologize because you’re failing at it?” Clarke walked into the ER and turned to face Lexa, waiting for her answer.

              “Not apologizing,” Lexa stated. “Just letting you know I didn’t mean to offend you.”

              Clarke shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. “Isn’t your official start date tomorrow? You should go and enjoy the downtime.”

              Lexa smirked. “Trying to get rid of me?”

              Clarke nodded sharply. “Yes.” Before she could say anything else, her pager went off. She brushed past Lexa, making her way outside to the ambulance bay where Bellamy was standing. “What do we have?” She asked as she pulled gloves onto her hands.

              “GSW to the chest.” Bellamy glanced over at Clarke. “Heard you had a run-in with the Commander.”

              Clarke frowned. “The Commander?”

              “Lexa Woods,” Bellamy clarified. “She’s a tough one from what I’ve heard.”

              “Why’d she even transfer?” Clarke huffed.

              “Personal matter,” Bellamy answered. “I just don’t know the details. That’s all the Chief would divulge. I doubt he even knows the details.” The ambulance arrived, halting their conversation but Clarke couldn’t deny being curious about Lexa Woods.

 

 

              Clarke had just finished stabilizing the gunshot wound patient and was now heading back to the ER. When she entered the room, she was surprised(and agitated) to see that Lexa was still there. The brunette was currently sitting on a stool as she sutured a wound on a little boy’s leg. He had to be no more than seven. Clarke leaned against the front desk and watched the brunette in action.

              “You’re being really brave,” Lexa said, gently as she kept her attention on the stitches.

              The boy sniffed a bit before responding. “Will the string be in my leg forever?”

              Lexa smiled and finished the last stitch before cutting the end off. “No, it’ll disappear like magic,” she replied as she looked up at him.

              The boy’s eyes widened. “It will?”

              Lexa nodded. “You probably won’t even notice it. It won’t hurt at all.” Lexa saw the bear the boy was holding and noticed the stuffing coming from its arm. “Think your buddy needs stitches as well?”

              The boy smiled and nodded his head frantically. “His arm got caught in the car door,” the boy explained.

              “I can fix him right up for you.”

              Clarke watched in amusement as Lexa stitched up the bear. She found herself smiling and quickly made herself stop. Lexa was a jerk. She wouldn’t get drawn in because of one kind act.

              Abby entered the ER and made her way over to Clarke. “Hey, have you spoken to Doctor Woods, much?”

              “Nope, been busy,” Clarke replied. “Hey, do you know why she transferred?”

              “Change of atmosphere.” Abby looked over at the doctor and smiled. “You two should get along fantastically.”

              Clarke narrowed her eyes at her mother. “No, don’t do that.”

              Abby looked at Clarke innocently. “Don’t do what?” Clarke raised her eyebrows as she gave her mother a look that said, “you know what I’m talking about.”             

              “Stay out of my personal life,” Clarke warned. “Raven and Octavia are enough. I don’t need you on my case too.”

              Abby sighed. “Fine, but your father agrees that you need to get back out there. There’s more to life than work.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “Says the workaholic.”

              Monty made his way over to the two women with a clipboard in his hand. “Doctor Griffin.” Abby and Clarke turned their heads to look at him.  “Oh, um. Little Griff.”

              Clarke looked at her resident with a frown. “Little Griff? Really?”

              “Doctor Reyes calls you that to differentiate the two of you. Octavia is Mini Blake.” Monty saw the way his attending was looking at him and cleared his throat before continuing. “Or I can just stick to Doctor Griffin.”      

              “Good idea. What do you need?”

              “Doctor Jaha wants a consult,” Monty replied. “Uh…. Jaha junior.” The resident shook his head. “Did you all have to work at the same hospital?”

              Clarke took the clipboard and scanned it over. “Angela Piedmont, thirty-seven. She keeps getting fevers but when she goes to sleep it goes back to normal.”

              “Apparently she’s been dealing with it for sixth months. No one knows what’s wrong with her. She’s had several MRI scans, blood assays, bone marrow biopsy’s but nothing explains what’s going on.”

              Clarke took in the information, already running options through her head for how she wanted to move forward. “I’ll go speak to him.” Clarke looked over at her mother. “Being single is great. I enjoy it. Stop meddling,” she said before walking away to go speak with Doctor Jaha.

 

 

              Clarke was sitting in one of the MRI rooms as she looked over the new scans of Mrs. Piedmont. She was comparing them to the older scans but had yet to find anything. She heard the door open and assumed it was Wells returning to help her but the voice she heard caused her to roll her eyes.

              “Doctor Jaha said you might require my help,” Lexa said as she moved to sit down in the chair beside Clarke.

              “He was wrong,” Clarke replied without looking away from the scans.

              “Holding a grudge, I see,” Lexa said, amused.

              “I’m busy,” Clarke replied, curtly. She held up a scan and Lexa looked at it, noticing a mass in the left ovaries. “Has that been looked into?”

              “No, every doctor who has seen it has decided it’s there for decoration purposes,” Clarke said sarcastically. “It’s a benign fibroid tumor.”

              “Okay, do you want to talk it through?” Lexa asked. “That usually helps me.”

              Clarke knew that was a good idea and decided to not be stubborn right now. “Okay, we can do that.” They talked through the symptoms, bouncing ideas off of each other for a good few minutes before Lexa came up with something.

              “You should do an ex-lap.”

              Clarke quirked a brow. “An ex-lap? Do you have any idea what I’d be looking for?”

              “None whatsoever,” Lexa replied, honestly. “But an exploratory laparotomy couldn’t hurt. You might see something scans aren’t showing.”

              Clarke nodded in agreement. “Okay, an ex-lap it is.”

 

 

              Clarke exited the locker room and was making her way outside when she spotted Lexa standing in the parking lot talking on the phone. She had figured out Mrs. Piedmont’s issues due to Lexa’s suggestion and knew she had to thank the brunette no matter how much she didn’t want to. She made her way over to the cardiothoracic surgeon just as she was getting off of the phone.

              Lexa nodded a greeting at Clarke. “I heard you figured out that Mrs. Piedmont had temporal arteritis.”

              “I did. Thanks for your suggestion.”

              Lexa smiled. “That’s twice now, Doctor Griffin.”

              Clarke let out a frustrated breath. “You’re making it hard for me to be nice to you. I hope you’re less of a jerk tomorrow.”

              “A jerk, huh?” Lexa moved to the driver side of her car. “Most people think I’m charming.”

              “You’re definitely not,” Clarke said as she moved to her own car that was only a few down from Lexa’s.

              “Well, at least I know you think I’m hot,” Lexa said.

              “Momentary lapse of judgement,” Clarke called to her before getting into her car.

              Lexa chuckled and got into her car as well before pulling out of the parking lot. As she drove to her apartment, she was pretty sure Clarke was trying to beat her there but it was to no avail because they arrived at the same time.

              “You know you can’t avoid me, right?” Lexa asked as they both walked up the stairs.

              “I’m really hoping I can,” Clarke said as she stopped outside her apartment.

              “I’ll see you tomorrow, Clarke,” Lexa said with playfulness in her voice. “I’ll actually be busy tomorrow so hopefully you can manage without me,” she said before disappearing into her apartment.

              Clarke clenched her jaw and entered her own apartment where she saw Raven sitting on the couch. Octavia was on-call so she’d be at the hospital until the morning. “I hate her.”

              Raven grinned as she continued to watch TV. “Have angry sex with her. It’ll be good for you.”

              Clarke took off her jacket and tossed it at Raven’s head, not appreciating her comment. She made her way into the bathroom to take a shower, hoping tomorrow would be a Lexa-free day. Ark Hospital definitely wasn’t big enough for the both of them.

             


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**A few days later…**

Lexa was reading over a patient’s lab when she felt the presence of someone. She glanced up and saw Octavia smiling widely at her. “Doctor Blake,” she greeted her. “Is there something I can do for you?”

              “I’m your resident,” Octavia said, happily. “I’m excited to learn everything you have to teach me. I’ve been reading a lot about Grounder Medical and you guys are very hardcore doctors over there. I mean, we’re pretty bad ass over here but you guys are next level. I heard from Abby that you were an intern when you had to perform a surgery on an elevator. So epic.”

              Lexa waited a moment unsure if Octavia was done speaking but when the younger woman didn’t continue, she decided it was safe to speak. “I don’t teach. Maybe you’d be better off with Doctor Griffin.”

              “Abby? She sent me to you,” Octavia stated. “This is a teaching hospital, you know. You don’t have much of a choice.”

              Lexa knew the brunette was right. “Fine. I have a heart valve replacement at noon. You can scrub in on that.  Until then,” Lexa handed Octavia the lab report she had been looking over. “You can tell Mr. Henrick that his health sucks.”

              Octavia took the folder. “I’ll get right on that.” She started to leave but turned back around to face Lexa. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

              “No,” Lexa replied as she was handed another file from the nurse at the desk.

              “Why did you leave GM?” Octavia continued.

              Lexa signed a form and handed it to the nurse before looking at Octavia. “Get to work, Doctor Blake.”

              “Right. Sorry.” Octavia turned and headed down the hall, now even more curious as to why the doctor had decided to transfer to Ark Hospital.

              Lexa was about to make her way down the hall but stopped when she saw Clarke making her way towards her with another doctor. Clarke hadn’t noticed her because she was currently looking at a file so Lexa took this opportunity to admire how gorgeous the blonde was.

              “Doctor Woods,” the other doctor next to Clarke greeted her.

              Lexa looked away from Clarke to look at the man. “Doctor…”

              “Kane,” the man held out his hand. “It’s great to have you here.”

              Lexa shook his hand and smiled. “Thank you.”

              Marcus Kane gestured to Clarke. “You’ve met Doctor Griffin, right?”

              Lexa nodded. “Yes, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting her. Actually, could I steal her from you for a moment?” Clarke narrowed her eyes at Lexa, wondering why the brunette wanted to speak to her.

              “Sure,” Kane replied. “We’ll talk later,” he said to Clarke before walking away.

              “What do you need, Doctor Woods?” Clarke asked, trying to be polite. The last few days with the brunette had been frustrating. If Lexa wasn’t recommending how she should do a surgery, she was commenting on her technique. She didn’t even know why the cardiothoracic surgeon bothered to watch her surgeries from the gallery.

              Lexa smirked. “The glares I receive from you at least five times a day are starting to hurt my feelings, Doctor Griffin.”

              Clarke quirked a brow. “Oh, do you have those? It’s hard to tell a hundred percent of the time.” Clarke knew that wasn’t true. She did remember how Lexa had been with that little boy a few days ago but the doctor was so infuriating that it eclipsed her semi-decent side.  

              Lexa’s smirk remained at Clarke’s agitated response. “Are you still upset about yesterday?”

              Clarke narrowed her eyes at the brunette. “Let me run you through yesterday,” she began. “You stole my parking spot.”

              “Wasn’t aware that it was yours,” Lexa interjected.

              “You stole my parking spot,” Clarke reiterated, “which resulted in me having to search for a spot and then when I went to buy coffee – guess what? You were there. And do you know what you were doing?”

              Lexa quirked an amused brow. “Ordering coffee?”

              “You were ordering the most pretentious cup of coffee I’ve ever heard of. And do you know what happened while you were doing that?”

              Lexa shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. “No, but I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”

              “My pager went off so I didn’t even get to have a taste of coffee before chaos began. You threw off my whole day. And do you want to know what you did the day before that?” Clarke asked, wanting to get her rant completely out.

              “I’m guessing it’s something bad,” Lexa replied.

              “After you assisted me on my surgery yesterday and I was closing up, you commented on my suturing technique.”

              Lexa did recall doing that. It was just out of habit. She and her best friend/fellow Doctor, Anya, would always make remarks on what the other was doing. Mostly it was just out of playful teasing. “I apologize if you took offense. I do standby what I said, though. A pulley suture would’ve-,”

              “Ohmygod, do you have an off switch?” Clarke groaned. “I’m not an intern. I don’t need your input when it comes to how I operate. Have a good day, Doctor Woods.” Clarke turned and walked away, leaving Lexa to think about her words.

              Lexa spotted one of the residents walking by and called to him. “Doctor Green.”

              Monty quickly approached her and smiled. “Yes, Doctor Woods? Do you need me to scrub in for something? I’m-,”

              “What’s Doctor Griffin’s coffee order?”

              Monty blinked for a few seconds before frowning. “Her coffee order?”

              “Correct.” Lexa was sure the man had gotten Clarke coffee at some point during his residency.

              Monty sighed and went over to the front desk to get a piece of paper and a pen. “I’ll just write it down for you.”

              Lexa smirked. “Thank you.. Doctor Blake is scrubbing in with me for a surgery at twelve. You should join us.” Monty perked up at hearing this and began to happily write down the way Clarke liked her coffee.

 

 

 

 

              Clarke was heading to the cafeteria after a long day when she saw her mother and Lexa standing just outside of it, talking.

              “Clarke,” Abby smiled. “Doctor Woods was just telling me that she doesn’t know where much of anything is yet in the area.”

              “Thank god for GPS then, right?” Clarke hoped her mother wasn’t about to ask her what she thought she was about to.

              “You should show her around,” Abby said. “I know you’re both off this weekend.” Clarke hoped the way she was looking at her mother would make the woman realize that was a bad idea.

              “I’m sure Doctor Griffin has plans that don’t involve showing me around,” Lexa smiled. “I’m sure I’ll be able to manage.”

              “But she can show you the best places to go,” Abby insisted. “Clarke’s personal life is nonexistent so she has all the time in the world.” Abby’s pager went off and she glanced at it. “I’ve got to run but you two should make plans.”

              Lexa grinned once she was alone with Clarke. “Is your mother trying to set us up?”

              Clarke scoffed. “No, she… ignore her. And I’m not spending my weekend with you.”

              “Or you could,” Lexa suggested, nonchalantly. “Saturday night, dinner.”

              Clarke furrowed her brows and glanced behind her as if she would find a camera crew recording this obvious prank. She looked back at Lexa suspiciously. “Are you asking me on a date?”

              Lexa gave a firm nod. “I am.”

              Clarke let out a dry laugh. “You’re serious? Why do you think I’d say yes?”

              Lexa smirked. “Well, I’m attractive and you obviously can’t stop thinking about me.”

              “I can’t stop thinking about how much you annoy me,” Clarke corrected. “We’re not going on a date.”

              “If you got to know me, you might like me better,” Lexa insisted.

              “If I got to know you, I might like you even less than I already do,” Clarke retorted.

              “Possibly,” Lexa agreed. “But you won’t know that until you go on a date with me.”

              Clarke was still thrown by the fact that Lexa was actually asking her out. “Why exactly are you interested in a date with me?”

              “I’d like to get to know you.” Clarke flipped the idea around in her head. It was possible that they might actually enjoy each other’s company. “Maybe you’ll be less uptight outside of a hospital setting,” Lexa added.

              Clarke clenched her jaw at the brunette’s words but before she could say anything her pager went off. “I’m going to have to pass on that date,” she said as she began to walk backwards down the hall. “I’m pretty sure our compatibility is probably somewhere in the negatives. Also, your social skills – work on them.” Lexa watched Clarke turn and walk away but wasn’t put down by the blonde’s rejection. She would just have to try again.

 

 

 

              Clarke was in the ER with Bellamy hanging around the front desk as they took a moment to relax after how busy it had been dealing with the events of a bus turning over. “What do you think of Woods?” Clarke asked her fellow trauma surgeon.

              “I like her,” Bellamy answered. “She’s blunt. You never have to wonder with her, you know?”

              Clarke sighed. “I don’t know. She’s still a mystery to me. She asked me out.”

              Bellamy looked at Clarke with a lopsided smile. “And did you say yes?”

              “Absolutely not. Her attitude leaves a lot to be desired. Also, I’m not ready for anything like that. I’m still dealing with everything that’s happened.”

              “Clarke,” Bellamy said, sympathetically. “It’s been six months.”

              “I wasn’t aware there was a time limit on this,” Clarke said, dryly. “Let me just forget all about it and move on.”

              “Okay, I’m sorry,” Bellamy said. “I just think dating would be good for you. And Doctor Woods seems like your type.”

              “I don’t know. She just isn’t winning me over like she appears to be doing with everyone else,” Clarke said. “Octavia sings her praises, Raven thinks she’s cool and my mom wants her as a daughter-in-law.”

              “Give her a chance,” Bellamy insisted. “She’s still new and getting a hang of everything. Maybe you make her nervous and she says the wrong thing.”

              Clarke thought it over. “No, she’s really just an ass.”

              Bellamy laughed. “Alright, maybe she is but she’s definitely keeping you on your toes.” Bellamy’s pager beeped and he headed off, leaving Clarke to contemplate his words.

 

 

 

              Later that night, Clarke was out at a bar near the hospital with Raven and Octavia when she saw Lexa walk in. “Are you serious,” she groaned. “Is no place sacred?”

              Raven chuckled. “The Powers That Be obviously want you two together.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “The Powers That Be can mind their business.”

              Octavia sipped her beer. “She let me scrub in on an awesome surgery today. She’s intense and scares me, but she’s amazing.”

              Before Clarke could comment on how one of them could date her if they liked her so much, a man toppled off his stool and onto the floor. Two of the man’s friends rushed to the floor to check on him.

              Clarke rushed over to them just as Lexa was. Both doctors knelt down on either side of the man and began to look him over. Clarke put two fingers to his neck. “Weak pulse.”

              Lexa tore the man’s shirt open, which revealed a huge bruise that had formed, and placed her ear to his chest. “Muffled heartbeat.”

              “He was fixing his roof earlier today,” one of the man’s friends rushed out. “He slipped and fell right off. He said he was fine just a little banged up. He didn’t want to go to the hospital.”

              “How long ago was that?” Clarke asked in disbelief that the man hadn’t gone to the hospital for something like that.

              “A few hours ago,” the friend answered in a panic. “Is he having a heart attack?”

              Lexa pointed to the right side of the man’s neck where she saw a thick vein. “JVD.”

              “A cardiac tamponade? We’d need an ultrasound to be sure.”  

              “We’ll have to work with seventy percent sure.”

              Clarke stared at Lexa for a beat before looking at the bartender. “I need the cleanest box cutter you have, rubbing alcohol, gloves if you have any… shit- where are we going to get an eighteen gauge?”

              “If you have a Windex bottle or something similar, we need that.” Lexa looked at Clarke. “That’s as good as it’ll get. You haven’t been drinking have you?”

              Clarke shook her head. “Not a drop.” She looked down at the man. “His pericardial sac will burst if we don’t hurry up.”

              The bartender came rushing back placing everything down by the doctors. Clarke grabbed one pair of the gloves and put them on before sanitizing the man’s chest along with the box cutter. She handed the box cutter to Lexa before moving to sanitize the tube from a spray bottle.

              Lexa took a deep breath and cut the man’s chest carefully before looking up at Clarke. “Go for it.” Clarke placed the tube to where Lexa had made the incision. “Don’t puncture the heart,” Lexa warned.

              “Not my first cardiac tamponade,” Clarke said in barely a whisper before pushing the tube down. Blood shot out from the tube and Lexa smiled at the successful procedure. “Perfect.”

              “An ambulance should be here soon,” Raven said to them.

              Lexa looked at Clarke, who was holding the tube in place. “We’d make a good team, Clarke.”

              “I highly doubt that,” Clarke stated. “But we did do a good job… and I still don’t like you, by the way. This moment changes nothing.”

              Lexa smirked. “Noted, but may I say that you holding that tube to this possibly dying man’s chest, in this bar setting, is incredibly hot.”  

              Clarke’s eyes widened and she had to stop herself from laughing. “You’re ridiculous… and inappropriate.” Lexa could see the smile that Clarke was trying to keep from appearing and knew that she could win the trauma surgeon over in time… but it definitely wouldn’t be easy.

             

             


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

              Clarke entered the locker room the next morning and saw that Lexa was in there as well. She moved to her locker, which just happened to be near Lexa’s and decided to play nice today. “Good morning, Doctor Woods.”

              Lexa grinned and removed her shirt before tossing it into her locker. “Doctor Griffin,” she greeted her. She stood shirtless as she gestured to the two cups of coffee that were sitting on the bench. “I bought you coffee.”

              Clarke opened her locker before glancing at the brunette, pretending she didn’t notice just how fit Lexa was. “Why?”

              “Because I wanted to,” Lexa replied. “Don’t worry, it’s your normal boring order.”

              “And how do you know what my coffee order is?” Clarke asked as she undressed to put on her scrubs.

              “I have my sources,” Lexa replied. “You know, most people just say ‘thank you’ where I’m from.”

              Clarke knew she was being unnecessarily snippy. “Sorry.” She picked up the coffee. “Thank you.”

              “You’re welcome.” Lexa finished undressing before slipping her scrubs on. “So can I do it again?”

              Clarke frowned. “Do what again?”

              “Buy you coffee,” Lexa stated as she pulled on her lab coat. “There’s a café around the corner. Maybe we can go there in between the chaos.”

              Clarke quirked a brow. “You’re asking me on a date?”

              “I am,” Lexa confirmed.

              Clarke sipped her coffee. “The answer is still no.” She turned to leave and Lexa followed her out.

              “Okay, how do I make the answer a yes?” Lexa asked, curiously.

              “I’m never going on a date with you,” Clarke stated.

              “Do you have some rule against dating colleagues?”

              “I don’t. I just know we wouldn’t work,” Clarke replied. “No matter how attractive I think you are.”

              Octavia approached Clarke and Lexa with a stack of folders in her arms. “Doctor Woods, I have the labs for Janette Talley. She’ll need surgery. Coronary artery bypass grafting, actually.”

              Lexa turned away from Clarke to face Octavia. “You sound sure.”

              “I am sure,” Octavia said, confidently. “I’m a third-year resident not an intern.”

              Lexa stared at Octavia for a moment before holding her hand out for the file. Octavia handed it over and waited nervously as the doctor looked over the labs. “And if you were doing this surgery, which artery would you use?”

              “The saphenous veins,” Octavia replied. “Faster recovery and less scarring. She’s a single mom. She’ll need to be back on her feet as quickly as possible.” 

              “Guess it’s a good thing you’re not doing the surgery,” Lexa commented. “Using the internal mammary arteries has the best long-term results.” Lexa closed the folder before looking at Clarke. “Enjoy your coffee, Doctor Griffin.” She said before walking away.

              Octavia sighed as she looked at her best friend. “She hates me.”

              “She doesn’t,” Clarke replied. “She just lacks social skills so she comes off as rude all the time.”

              “So you’re friends now?” Octavia asked, happily. “Can you put in a good word for me?”

              “We’re nowhere near being friends,” Clarke replied. “And you don’t need me to put in a good word for you. You’re great, Octavia.”

              “She probably won’t even let me scrub in now,” Octavia sighed. “I messed up. I just wanted to impress her.”

              “You didn’t mess up,” Clarke assured her. “An internal mammary artery graft is just the better idea for her amount of blockage, which is what Doctor Woods should have told you instead of being a douche.”

              “She did say she doesn’t teach,” Octavia said, miserably.

              “Well this is a teaching hospital,” Clarke replied. “She’ll need to do better.”

              “I better go finish delivering labs,” Octavia replied. “Thanks, Clarke.”

              “No problem,” Clarke said before heading to the ER, making a mental note to talk to Lexa about her teaching methods.

 

 

              Clarke was updating the surgery board, which was a big whiteboard with all the surgeries scheduled for the day, when Raven approached her. “Hey, slow day today, huh?”

              “Yeah,” Raven agreed. “It’s given me a lot of time to talk to Lexa, though. She likes hiking. We’ve made plans to do a trail over the weekend. You should come.”

              “I see her enough,” Clarke replied as she erased a surgery from the board. “I don’t want to willingly spend time with her.”

              Octavia approached them. “Are you talking about Woods?”

              “Of course,” Clarke replied. “It seems to be the only thing anyone wants to talk to me about.”

              Lexa turned a corner and spotted Octavia. “Doctor Blake,” she said. “What are you doing?”

              Octavia froze for a moment. She was pretty sure she didn’t have anything she was supposed to be doing for the doctor right now. “Um… standing?”

              “We have a heart surgery,” Lexa stated.

              “The grafting surgery?” Octavia asked, trying to keep her excitement to a minimum. “You’re letting me scrub in on that?”

              “I’m letting you take point,” Lexa clarified. “Unless you don’t think you can.”

              “No, I can. I totally can,” Octavia quickly assured her.

              “Okay, let’s go.” Lexa turned and headed down the hall, leaving an excited Octavia behind.

              Octavia did a silent squeal at her friends and bounced around excitedly before rushing off to join Lexa.

              Raven smiled as she looked back at Clarke. “Lexa’s not so bad. She just comes off as… a little rough around the edges.” Raven’s pager went off and she looked down at it. “You should come with us on Saturday,” she said before leaving.

              Clarke thought it over for a few seconds before sighing in defeat. Maybe spending a Saturday morning with Lexa wouldn’t be the worst thing.

 

             

              Clarke was lying in bed in one of the on-call rooms, enjoying a few minutes of peace and quiet. She was actually about to drift off to sleep when she heard the door to the room open. Sighing, she opened her eyes and then proceeded to roll them when she saw Lexa. “This room is taken.”

              “I can see that,” Lexa stated. “But there’s also another empty bed,” she gestured to the bed on the other side of the small room. “So I think it’s okay that we’re both in here.” Lexa moved to lie down on the bed. She turned her back to Clarke and closed her eyes until she heard Clarke begin to speak.

              “Why did you transfer here?” Clarke asked, curiously. “This is a teaching hospital and you’re obviously not great at that.”

              Lexa turned onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. She linked her fingers together, resting them on her stomach before finally speaking. “Does it matter why I transferred?”

              “I’m just trying to figure you out,” Clarke replied. “You’re a bit of a mystery.”  

              Lexa looked over at Clarke with a smirk. “Well, if you have coffee with me, you might learn something.”

              “I’m not that curious,” Clarke lied. “And honestly, I’m just not interested in dating anyone. I was in a serious relationship for two years and it ended badly.”

              “I’ve had one of those,” Lexa revealed.

              “How long were you together?”

              “Three months.”

              Clarke frowned as she looked over at the brunette. “You call three months a serious relationship?” Clarke had been with Finn for two years and she hadn’t been in love with him. He was just the safe choice; nice guy, solid career. Her parents never cared much for him and her best friends didn’t think he was the one for her, but she had stayed, thinking maybe one day she could love him the way that he loved her.

              “Well, it was definitely my longest relationship,” Lexa stated, not wanting to get deep about her personal life.

              Clarke sighed and sat up on the bed. “I was trying to have a civil conversation with you. I don’t need you mocking me.”

              “I wasn’t mocking you, Clarke,” Lexa assured her.

              Clarke and Lexa’s pagers went off simultaneously and they both got up to rush to the ER without another word. When Lexa saw a familiar face sitting on one of the beds, she quickly made her way over. “Anya? What happened?”

              “An idiot didn’t tie a canoe to the hood of his car properly,” Anya answered. “It caused a major accident.”

              “She’ll be fine,” Monty added. “I just need to stitch her arm up.”

              “I don’t want some intern stitching me up,” Anya replied.

              Monty huffed indignantly. “I’m a resident.”

              “I’ll do Doctor Lachman’s sutures,” Lexa said to Monty as she grabbed a pair of gloves.

              “Doctor?” Monty asked, uneasily. He didn’t want another scary doctor at Ark Hospital.

              “I worked with her at Grounder Medical,” Lexa explained. “She’s…,” Lexa frowned and looked at Anya. “What are you doing here?”

              “Visiting,” Anya replied. “Wanted to make sure everything was going alright. And I might miss you a little bit.”

              Lexa smiled and sat down on a stool so she could begin to suture Anya’s cut. “I’ve missed you, too.”

              Anya looked down at her arm. “What technique are you going to use?”

              “It’s a clean cut so a subcuticular suture,” Lexa replied.

              Monty’s eyes widened in awe. “That’s like the ‘holy grail’ of sutures! I’ve never seen one done. I mean, I tried on a banana once but that was an epic fail. Can I watch?”       

              “Will you stay silent if I let you?” Lexa asked as she began closing up Anya’s arm.

              “Yes,” Monty promised as he sat down on another stool to watch Lexa work.

              “Doctor Woods,” Clarke rushed over. “We need you.”

              “I’m busy,” Lexa replied.

              “Doctor Green can do a suture,” Clarke said, impatiently. “You’re needed now.”

              “I’ve already started a subcuticular suture,” Lexa replied.

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “I’ll finish it. You’re needed more than I am right now.”

              Lexa looked up at Anya, who nodded for her to go. She placed down the forceps and needle driver before getting up and rushing over to where she was needed.

              “This is Doctor Lachman,” Monty said to Clarke. “She worked with Doctor Woods at Grounders.”

              Clarke took a seat where Lexa had been before. “Was she a pain in the ass there as well?”

              Anya grinned. “I taught her everything she knows.”

              “So you’re a pain in the ass, too?” Clarke asked as she picked up the equipment and continued Lexa’s work.

              “I have my days,” Anya replied. “Lexa is an exceptional doctor. Your hospital is lucky to have her.”

              “Why did she leave Grounder Medical?” Clarke hoped she could learn from Doctor Lachman what she couldn’t from Lexa.

              “Personal matters,” Anya said, simply, as she watched Clarke effortlessly do one of the hardest sutures there was to master. “What’s your specialty?”

              “Trauma,” Clarke replied.

              Anya looked impressed. “A trauma surgeon knows how to cleanly do a subcuticular suture?”

              It was true that Clarke rarely got a chance to do the technique due to it being time-consuming and the fact that the wounds she saw on a day-to-day basis were not a candidate for it. “I practice a lot.” Things remained silent between them until Clarke was done knotting the suture. “There. That should heal nicely.”

              “Thank you, Doctor.” Anya admired the work and knew the scar would be barely visible once healed.

              “No problem.” Clarke placed a bandage over the stitches before standing up.

              “Would it be alright if I crashed in an on-call room until I can speak to Lexa?” Anya asked as she got up as well.

              “Go for it,” Clarke replied as she pulled off her gloves.

              Monty watched Anya walk away before looking at Clarke. “Grounder doctors are intense.” Clarke chuckled and patted Monty on the shoulder before going to check on patients.

 

 

              Lexa was sitting in the cafeteria with Anya, talking about how things were going at Grounder Medical. “I do miss it over there,” Lexa admitted. “Ark Hospital is interesting, though. I like it enough.”

              Anya grinned. “Or do you like a certain trauma surgeon enough?”

              “Clarke?” Lexa asked with a smile. “She’s not interested.”

              “But you are?” Anya asked.

              “I am,” Lexa confirmed. “There’s something about her. All I seem to do is piss her off, though.”

              “I’m just glad you’re trying to get back out there,” Anya replied. “You haven’t been interested in anyone since…” She stopped talking and sipped her water. “She thinks you’re a pain in the ass,” she said, deciding to veer the conversation away from the topic of Lexa’s ex.

              Lexa laughed lightly. “I know but I think deep, _deep_ down that she might actually like me.”

              “Guess only time will tell,” Anya replied.

 

 

 

              “She’s an ass.” Clarke looked away from the table that Lexa was sitting at with the other doctor from Grounder Medical.

              Raven sighed. “I think you’re being upset for no reason. She said she wasn’t mocking you.”

              “Yeah, you should just come with us hiking and spend some time getting to know her,” Octavia suggested. “She might surprise you.”

              “You know what? I’ll go,” Clarke said, “but only to assuage my curiosity. I know she’s hiding something.” Clarke decided at that moment that she would start spending time with the cardiothoracic surgeon in order to figure her out.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

              Lexa finished showing Anya around the hospital and ended the tour back in the ER. “So how long are you here for?”

              “A few days,” Anya replied. “Indra decided I needed to use my vacation time and I thought it would be a good idea to check up on you. Speaking of which, I’ll need your house key. I don’t want to hang around this place until you’re done.”

              Lexa quirked a brow. “You’re going to spend your vacation at my apartment?”

              “Yep,” Anya replied. “You’ve been making questionable decisions. I need to make sure your sanity is intact.”

              Lexa folded her arms across her chest. “Questionable decisions?”

              “Leaving GM for Ark Hospital is one big one,” Anya began, listing them off with her fingers. “Moving from your very nice condo, which I loved being in. Oh, and let’s not forget turning down the opportunity to be the chief of cardiothoracic surgery. The _chief,_ Lexa. Why would you turn that down? An opportunity like that is great for your career.”

              Lexa sighed. “You’re definitely not staying at my apartment if you’re going to lecture me about my life choices the entire time.”

              “You’re being an idiot,” Anya stated. “It’s my job as your former mentor and best friend to tell you these things.”

              “It’s also your job to be supportive.”

              “I can’t be supportive of you sabotaging your career. If this is because of what happened with Costia-,”

              “Don’t,” Lexa said, sternly. “I haven’t sabotaged anything. Stop being overdramatic. How about we agree to not talk about my career choices?”

              Anya was silent for a moment, wanting to persist but decided to drop it. “Fine. We won’t talk about your bad decisions and what little sense they make. Keys, please.”

              Lexa narrowed her eyes at the woman. “I don’t know if I want you around me for a few days.”

              “You do,” Anya assured her. “I’m ninety percent sure you haven’t unpacked much of anything. You need me.”

              Lexa’s shoulders slumped. “I’ve been busy,” she muttered before heading towards the locker room to grab her key. “You don’t need to help me unpack. I’ll get around to it.” A thought hit her and she turned her head to look at Anya. “Hey, how do you feel about hiking?”

               

Lexa was following the trail, staying behind to be near Clarke while Anya, Raven and Octavia chatted a few feet ahead of them. She looked over at Clarke, her gaze trailing over her outfit; yoga pants that hugged her just right and a tight fitting tank top.

              “I can feel you perving on me.” Clarke put the cap back onto her bottle and looked at Lexa.

              Lexa smirked. “I apologize, Clarke. I just find you very beautiful.

              Clarke pushed down the smile that threatened to appear at the compliment. “That won’t work on me.”

              Lexa quirked a brow. “And what’s that exactly?”

              “You trying to be charming. I’m not buying into it.”  

              “I’m naturally charming,” Lexa said, affronted. “Especially around intelligent, gorgeous women.”

              Clarke shook her head. “I’m not charmed.”

              “I guess I need to try a bit harder then.”

              “I do believe I’ve said I’m not interested,” Clarke reminded the brunette as she stopped walking the trail to turn and face Lexa.

              “I’m not asking you out,” Lexa pointed out. “I’m just having a conversation with you. And since we’re on the topic of how interested you aren’t, I wanted to apologize for the other day. I wasn’t mocking your past relationship. I was with my girlfriend for three months and I loved her. She was actually one of the best things to happen to me.”

              “Then why did it only last three months?” Clarke asked, curiously.

              “A conversation for another time,” Lexa replied. “Perhaps during dinner?”

              Clarke shook her head. “You don’t give up do you?”

              Lexa shrugged. “I like to think of myself as determined.”

              “Really? I think annoying is more fitting,” Clarke said, with a hint of playfulness. “Possibly even desperate.”

              Lexa laughed lightly. “Desperate? No, I think enamored is the best choice.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes and continued on the trail. “We better catch up to the others.”

              “Want to know what I think?” Lexa began as she followed beside Clarke.

              “Not really.”

              Lexa smiled. “You like me.”

              “I think you need more water,” Clarke said. “You’re dehydrated and it’s making you delusional.”

              Lexa gestured ahead of them at Anya, Raven and Octavia. “Looks like our friends are getting along.” The three were laughing and talking as if they had known each other for years.  

              “Yeah, I’m actually surprised. Anya doesn’t seem the type to warm up to others easily,” Clarke commented.

              “She’s not, but I guess she’s making an exception.”

              Raven turned around and looked at the two who were trailing behind them. “Hey, Griffin, we’re having a little get together at our place tonight. Drinks and games. Anya’s in. Lexa?”

              Anya knew Lexa would turn down the invitation. She wasn’t much for parties. “I’ll have to pass.”

              “It won’t just be us,” Raven assured her. “We’re inviting Bellamy, Wells and a few others.”

              Anya chuckled. “Adding more people isn’t going to win her over. She’s somewhat of a recluse.”

              Lexa rolled her eyes. “I have things to do tonight.”

              “Like what?” Anya challenged. “Staring at the unpacked boxes around your apartment?”

              Lexa sighed. “Fine, I’m in.”

              Clarke sighed as well, realizing she didn’t have much of a choice but to attend since this get-together was being held at her apartment. Hopefully she would get the opportunity to get to learn more about Lexa.

 

 

 

              Clarke was standing at the kitchen counter where she was currently partaking in a game of beer pong. Octavia and Raven had failed to mention that they had basically invited the entire hospital staff to this ‘get-together’ but she was enjoying herself nonetheless. Lexa had been busy with Anya, and Clarke tried to ignore the fact that she might be missing the brunette’s attention. Clarke threw the ball at the last cup and watched it effortlessly drop in.

              “Still reigning champion,” Clarke grinned. “Sorry, Blakes,” she said to the two siblings who rolled their eyes.

              “You always win,” Octavia whined.

              “And that’s why I’m always on her team,” Raven stated. “Move along, bitches. Who’s next?”

              “Get the Grounders,” Bellamy suggested. “Arkers against Grounders.”

              “Lexa is one of us now,” Octavia pointed out.

              “Well for all intents and purposes, tonight she isn’t,” Bellamy said.

              Raven took the beer bottle that Clarke had been holding and gestured towards Lexa and Anya, who were in the living room talking. “Go get your girl.”

              Clarke narrowed her eyes at Raven. “She’s not my girl.”

              “Whatever,” Raven waved her off. “Go get her. If anyone will be able to talk her into playing, it’s you.”

              Clarke reluctantly made her way over to Lexa and Anya. “Hey, you two up for a game?”

              Lexa looked away from Anya to smile at Clarke. She hadn’t spoken to the surgeon much tonight but she had been watching her. “I’m not interested in that mindless game. I would, however, be interested in a dance.”

              “Is it mindless because you’re not good at it?” Clarke countered. “Because from the way you act, I thought you’d be good at everything.”

              Lexa stared at Clarke for a beat before gesturing towards the kitchen. “Lead the way.” Anya shook her head in amusement but said nothing as she followed them.

 

 

 

              Turned out that Lexa was pretty damn good at beer pong. When she and Anya won, Lexa winked at Clarke before walking away. Anya stayed to play another game with Raven as her teammate this time and Clarke followed Lexa, who had moved back into the living room.

              “For someone who said beer pong was mindless, you’re really good at it.”

              Lexa turned to face the surgeon. “Solid hand-eye coordination. I’m not a secret party girl or whatever it is you’ve come up with.”

              “Clarke!” Octavia called to her friend.

              “I better get back,” Clarke said. “But I’m going to figure you out,” she added.

              “You can certainly try,” Lexa replied. “I definitely don’t mind the attention.”

              “Goodbye, Lexa,” Clarke said, exasperatedly, before making her way back over to her friends.

 

 

              Lexa had slipped out of the party an hour ago and was now sitting in her living room reading when she heard a knock on her door. She assumed it was Anya but got a surprise when she opened it to find Clarke standing before her. “Clarke,” she greeted her. “It’s one in the morning. Is this a booty call?”

              Clarke rolled her eyes, instantly deciding coming over here was a bad idea. She turned to leave but stopped when she felt a hand around her wrist.

              “Okay, I’ll stop. What’s up?” Lexa asked, seriously.

              “Everyone’s gone but Bellamy, Octavia, Raven and Anya are still going strong.”

              Lexa smirked. “So you want a sleepover?”

              “No, I want to hangout somewhere quiet for a bit,” Clarke answered. “I’m partied out.”

              Lexa stepped aside to let Clarke in and watched as the doctor scanned her apartment. There were boxes stacked all around; the apartment didn’t look lived in at all. Clarke looked at Lexa questioningly and Lexa shrugged. “I’ve been busy.”

              Clarke sat down in the living room and saw the book that Lexa had been reading. “Hey, I’ve read this. Are you liking it?”

              “It’s nice,” Lexa replied, simply before picking up the book and setting it on the coffee table. She sat down on the couch, leaving a decent-sized gap between herself and Clarke so she wouldn’t make the blonde uncomfortable. “I don’t have a TV or anything that could keep you mildly entertained,” she admitted. “We could always make-out, though… as a last resort, of course.”

              Clarke found herself smiling even though she rolled her eyes at Lexa’s words. “I’m sure it won’t come down to that. Why haven’t you begun unpacking?”

              “In case I don’t stay.” Lexa was surprised that she had answered so honestly and easily. Maybe the little bit of alcohol she had consumed was making her less guarded. She hadn’t even told Anya that her move to Northern Virginia might be temporary.  

              “Why wouldn’t you stay?” Clarke asked, curiously.

              Lexa turned her head to look at Clarke. “Moving here is my second chance. If I screw it up, then I might as well go back to D.C. and continue my life there.”

              “Why do you need a second chance?”

              “Why are you unwilling to give me one at all?”

              Clarke knew Lexa wouldn’t answer her question unless she answered hers so she decided to drop it but not before adding, “Just because I don’t want to date you doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with me.”

              “I know that,” Lexa assured her. “Octavia mentioned that you don’t date at all. You don’t like anyone getting close to you.” Clarke was irritated that Octavia had divulged that much to Lexa and would definitely be talking to her about it tomorrow. “Is it because of that relationship you were in? Did it break you?” Clarke was silent for a good while so Lexa decided to move on. She grabbed her iPod and started it up, letting the music replace the silence.

              Clarke bit at her lower lip before finally speaking. “Yes.”

              It took Lexa a moment to realize what Clarke was referring to but then she gave her a sad smile when it clicked. “Yeah, I’m broken, too.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

              Clarke woke up to the feeling of someone poking her cheek and swatted the hand away as she sat up on the couch. “Ow,” she muttered as she rubbed her neck. She looked up and saw Lexa looking at her in amusement. “We fell asleep on the couch while listening to my mellow music. What a Saturday night, right?”

              Clarke chuckled lightly. “Oh yeah, we’re so cool.” Lexa held out a glass of water to her and she gratefully took it. “Thanks.”

              “You’re welcome. I made breakfast if you’re hungry. Anya never came back over so I’m assuming she’s passed out in your apartment.”

              Clarke gulped down her water and took a good look at Lexa. The brunette had a fresh pair of jeans and a t-shirt on and her hair was damp. “How long have you been up?”

              “Two hours.” Lexa moved back into the kitchen to grab two plates. She handed Clarke one and sat down on the couch across from her before starting to eat.

              Clarke looked at Lexa before looking down at the plate in confusion. “Why’d you make me breakfast?”

              “Because I was making myself breakfast and you’re here, so why not?”

              Clarke picked up the fork resting on her plate. “Thank you… but if this is some way to woo me, I’m not that easy.”

              Lexa laughed. “Relax. It’s a no-strings attached breakfast, Clarke.”

              Clarke cut into her omelet and took a bite of it. Her eyes widened at the burst of flavor. “Ohmygod, this is amazing.”

              Lexa smiled. “I think you’re just hungry.”

              “No, really. This is good.” Clarke continued to eat.

              “I know. I was trying to be modest.” Lexa took a bite of her omelet before adding, “I really am a great cook. So are you warming up to me?”

              “Only because you fed me,” Clarke answered, jokingly.

              “I thought you weren’t easy.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “I didn’t say I’d have sex with you. You’re still an ass, but admittedly, I like you better outside of the hospital. I might entertain the idea of being nicer to you.”  

              Lexa smirked. “I’m sure that will be a great feat for you.”

              Clarke groaned. “It probably will be. You could make it easier by not being a jerk. Plainclothes Lexa is way more tolerable than Doctor Lexa.” Clarke grew serious as she set her plate down on the coffee table. “Thanks for letting me hang here last night.”

              “I didn’t mind the company.” Lexa stood up from the couch. “Maybe we can be friends. We can be platonically messed up together.”

              Clarke smiled. “Should make for an interesting friendship.”

              “Is that you saying you would actually be my friend?” Lexa asked as she placed her plate in the kitchen sink.

              Clarke tilted her head to the side as she thought about it. “We’ll go with acquaintances for now. You’re on a trial period.”

              Lexa laughed as she moved back into the living room. “Works for me.”

              The front door opened and Anya walked in tiredly. She ran a hand through her hair and trudged further into the apartment. She stopped when she finally noticed Lexa and Clarke. She looked from Lexa to Clarke and back at Lexa again, a smirk forming as she did so. She silently entered the bathroom, leaving the two alone once again.

              Lexa shook her head in amusement. “I’ll set her straight,” she promised Clarke.

              “I’ll probably have to do the same when I see Raven and Octavia.” Clarke got up from the couch. “Thanks again for breakfast.” She went into the kitchen and placed the plate in the sink. “I could wash up for you since you did make us breakfast.”

              Lexa waved her off. “Don’t worry about it. I’m going to make Anya something so I’ll just make a mess again. Enjoy your day, Clarke. You know where I am when you inevitably start missing me.”

              Clarke shook her head. “Already rethinking this acquaintanceship,” she said as she exited the apartment.

              Lexa smiled to herself once Clarke was gone and made her way to the bathroom. She opened the door and moved to sit on the sink while Anya showered. “We just listened to music,” she explained. “Nothing happened.”       

              Anya stuck her head out from behind the curtain. “Really? You just sat and listened to music all night?”

              “That’s it. It was actually really nice.”

              “That’s weird.” Anya’s head disappeared back into the shower. “Why are you being weird? I think D.C. was a better place for you. More people to keep an eye on you over there.”

              “I don’t need anyone keeping an eye on me,” Lexa assured Anya. “Anyway, what do you want to do today?”

              “Octavia and Raven invited me to go wall climbing later,” Anya replied. “Want to join us?”

              “As thrilling as that sounds, I’ll have to pass,” Lexa replied.

              Anya sighed. “You’re reverting back to pre-Costia.” Anya realized what she had said and stuck her head back out. “Sorry.”

              Lexa shook her head. “It’s fine. And I’m not.” Lexa hopped down from the counter. “Want breakfast?”

              “Please,” Anya replied, hoping she hadn’t upset her friend by bringing up Costia.

 

 

              Clarke was sitting in the living room watching TV when Octavia plopped down beside her. “You’ve been asleep forever.”

              “I’m finally feeling like I can move without puking.” Octavia laid down so that her head was resting on Clarke’s lap. “You disappeared last night.”

              “I went over to Lexa’s,” Clarke replied as she began to play with Octavia’s hair.

              “And what did you do at Lexa’s?” Octavia asked with a hint of a smile in her voice.

              “Listened to music until I fell asleep,” Clarke replied.

              Octavia sighed. “Seriously? Lame.”

              Clarke’s hand paused for a moment as she looked for the right words. “It wasn’t lame. It was nice. We just listened to music and it didn’t feel awkward. We were both content to just sit there.”

              “So you like her?” Octavia asked, feeling hopeful for Clarke’s love life.

              “As a friend… but even that’s still up for debate. And I would appreciate you not revealing anything else to her about my personal life.”

              “What did I reveal?” Octavia frowned as she tried to think up what she could’ve told the cardiothoracic surgeon.

              “That I don’t let anyone get close to me.”

              “But it’s true.”

              “Octavia,” Clarke warned.

              “Okay, okay. I won’t discuss your personal life with her.”

              Raven tiredly entered the living room and raised Octavia’s legs so she could sit down. She let her friend’s legs rest on her thighs as she laid her head back on the couch. “Why’d you let us drink so much?”

              Clarke laughed. “I thought you were having fun.”

              “We were,” Raven sighed. “Why does fun have to hurt so much?” Raven turned her head to look at Clarke. “Hey, where did you go last night?”

              Octavia excitedly answered for the blonde. “She was at Lexa’s listening to music.”

              Raven frowned. “Please tell me that’s code for something else.”

              “No, that’s what we did. How did you like Anya?” Clarke asked.

              “She’s cool,” Raven replied. “We’re all going wall climbing later. Are you up for it?”

              “Sure, nothing beats public embarrassment.”

              Octavia laughed. “You’ll be fine. And I’m sure Lexa will be there so if anything, you’ll at least have eye candy.”

 

 

 

              Lexa was sitting in the living room practicing sutures on a banana when there was a knock on her door. She set the banana down gently before moving to answer the door. Upon opening it, she was once again surprised to see Clarke.

              “Octavia, Raven and Anya are watching soccer and being very loud and angry about whatever’s going on.”

              Lexa chuckled and stepped aside to let Clarke in. “Second time in two days. Is this our thing now?”

              “You’re just the only other person I know in this building,” Clarke replied with a smirk as she moved to sit down on the couch. Lexa didn’t bother pointing out that the building was full of doctors and nurses from Ark Hospital.

              “So your best friends have stolen my best friend,” Lexa stated, amusedly as she headed into the living room to sit back down.

              “That appears to be the case.” Clarke gestured to the coffee table where the banana rested. “You’re practicing sutures?”

              “I find it soothing,” Lexa admitted.

              Clarke moved so that she was kneeling on the floor in front of the coffee table. She studied the banana for a second before picking up the forceps and needle driver to continue the suture technique that Lexa had been doing. “I paint.”

              Lexa frowned. “What?”

              “I paint,” Clarke repeated. “That’s what I find soothing. I wanted to be an artist but when I was seventeen I performed CPR on my neighbor and it changed everything. It’s amazing how one event can just change the course of your life.”

              Lexa thought about Costia but remained silent as she watched Clarke work.

              “Did you always want to be a doctor?” Clarke asked as she focused on her stitching.

              “I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I come from a family of doctors. It’s all I know.”

              “I’m sure they’re very proud of you. Will they be stopping by to visit, too?”

              “They’re busy people.” Lexa moved to kneel beside Clarke and looked over her work. “Not bad.”

              Clarke looked at Lexa in disbelief. “Not bad? This is perfect.”

              Lexa smirked. “I guess that depends on your definition of perfect.”

              Clarke looked at her sutures again. They couldn’t have been done any better. “You’re a jerk. I stand by my work. This banana was given a very amazing stitch job.”

              Lexa chuckled. “I’m sure he’ll make a quick recovery.” Lexa moved to sit back down on the couch and Clarke joined her.

              “You really need a TV,” Clarke commented as she stared at the blank wall in front of them.

              “I don’t need one. And besides, you’re here. I’d much rather stare at you than a screen.”

              “Hey, that wasn’t bad,” Clarke said, impressed. “Seven out of ten.”

              “Seven?” Lexa scoffed. “That was a solid ten.”

              Clarke smirked. “I think the delivery could’ve been smoother.”

              The front door opened and Anya walked in. “You two,” she began. “Stop being boring over here and come join us.”

              “We’re not being boring,” Clarke protested. Anya looked at the sutured banana on the table before quirking a brow at the blonde. “Say no more.” Clarke stood up from the couch.

              Anya then looked at Lexa. “You said you wanted to start unpacking. Everything looks the same.”

              “I got sidetracked,” Lexa lied as she stood up.

              Clarke slipped out of the apartment sensing that Anya wanted to talk to Lexa alone.

              “What is this, Lexa?” Anya asked. “Is it a silent cry for help?”

              Lexa rolled her eyes. “Don’t be overdramatic, Anya. I just haven’t gotten to it yet.”

              “But why haven’t you?” Anya asked. “Are you planning on running away in the middle of the night or something?”

              “No, this might not be it for me,” Lexa admitted. “I might move back to D.C. if things don’t work out for me here.”

              “I’m all for you moving back but you were so intent on getting away from Grounder Medical,” Anya pointed out. “Why would you want to go back?”

              Lexa shrugged. “Maybe the life that I want now isn’t the life that I can have. We’ll see what happens. Right now I’m just going with the flow.”

              Anya’s shoulders slumped. “You can have the life you want, Lexa. Costia’s gone but that doesn’t mean you have to settle for a life you’re not happy with anymore. Ark Hospital is your new start. You can be happy here. Just don’t fall into old habits.”

              “I don’t know if I can be the person I was without Costia by my side. Anya, I haven’t even told my parents that I left GM. When they find out, they’ll have a coronary.”

              “It’ll be fine,” Anya promised her. “It’s your life. You live it for yourself not for them.” She put an arm over the brunette’s shoulders. “Come on, let’s go hang with your awesome neighbors. Octavia’s got a motorcycle she’s going to let me ride before I head back to D.C. I’m definitely looking forward to that.”

             

 

 

              Clarke rushed over to where Raven, Lexa and Wells were arguing over a patient who had just been brought in earlier. “What do we have?”

              Lexa sighed. “We had Doctor Jaha paged.”

              “And he asked me to deal with it,” Clarke answered. “What’s going on?”

              “I need to operate or he might lose his leg,” Raven rushed out a she examined the man’s crushed leg.

              “He has a hemorrhage in his brain that I need to take care of before anyone does anything,” Wells argued.

              Lexa looked at Clarke, obviously irritated. “His heart is weak. He won’t survive the brain surgery. I can do my operation while Doctor Reyes does whatever she wants to his leg. Brain surgery has to wait.”

              “Having heart surgery won’t matter if he dies from an aneurysm,” Wells countered.

              “Do the brain surgery,” Clarke ordered. “Doctor Reyes, you can try to save his leg later. Doctor Woods, you’ll scrub in just in case something goes wrong with his heart.” Lexa rolled her eyes and walked away without another word. Clarke watched Wells smile triumphantly before heading to the OR to get ready for surgery.  She looked at Raven apologetically. “Sorry, Raven.”

              Raven waved her off. “I’m not upset. He can live without a leg if I’m not able to repair it. Lexa, however, is pissed at you.”

              Clarke sighed. “I made the right call.”

              Raven gave her shoulder a supportive squeeze. “See you at lunch. Hopefully Lexa’s all calmed down by then.”

 

 

              Clarke was walking down the hall when she spotted Lexa changing up her surgeries on the board.  “Hey, how’d the surgery go?”

              “Oh, he’s dead,” Lexa said, nonchalantly. “Coded three times and I couldn’t get him back.” Lexa tapped the end of the dry erase marker to her chest. “Weak heart.”

              Clarke sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she thought about whether having heart surgery first would’ve had a different outcome.      

              “Once Wells opened him up, he found more issues than he had originally thought. His heart wasn’t strong enough to handle the surgery. Even if I had operated first, he would’ve definitely still died. There wasn’t much we could do in this case.”

              Clarke frowned. “I thought you were upset about my decision.”

              “Oh, I was,” Lexa confirmed as she finished updating her surgeries on the board. “You should’ve let me go ahead with the heart surgery, but I’ve moved on.” She set the marker down and turned to face Clarke. “I’ve got a few others that I can actually save today. I’ll focus on the good.”

              “Didn’t you just say heart surgery first wouldn’t have made a difference?”

              “Yeah, but it’s like picking teams. Who likes being chosen last?” 

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “You’re unbelievable. And technically, Raven was chosen last and she’s not being mopey about it.”

              Lexa playfully glared at the blonde. “I’m not moping.”

              Abby approached the two and smiled at her daughter. “Clarke, are you coming over on Saturday?”

              “Of course. I wouldn’t miss dad’s birthday party.”

              Abby looked at Lexa. “You should come, Lexa. It’s a big thing. Lots of people, free food.”

              Clarke knew what her mother was up to and decided to try and stop her before she made things awkward. “I’m sure Lexa doesn’t want to spend her Saturday with us.”

              Lexa shoved her hands into her lab coat. “Free food does sound very appealing.”

              “Great, I’ll see you there,” Abby said, before the brunette could actually give her in answer. “Clarke can give you the directions… or you could just ride together.” Abby was walking away before Clarke could manage to get a word out.

              Lexa smirked. “Meeting the family already? I think we’re moving too fast, Clarke.”

              Clarke fought the smile that threatened to form. “You’re going to regret your decision to come when you meet my family.”

              “I’m going for your mother,” Lexa replied. “I think she likes me more than you.”

              Clarke shook her head. “You’re ridiculous.”

              “See you in the cafeteria for lunch?”

              “I think I’ve had my fill of you for the day.”

              “You can’t get enough of me, Griffin.” Lexa turned around to leave and Clarke finally let herself smile before moving to upgrade the surgery board.  

             


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

              Raven quirked a brow at Clarke as they sat side-by-side on a gurney in an empty hallway. "You're actually letting her join you?"

              "I thought about telling her I didn't want her to come but I think I might actually enjoy company."

              Raven smirked, knowingly. "Or do you mean her company specifically?"

              Clarke nudged Raven's shoulder with her own. "Okay yes, but not in the way that you are thinking. I actually don't mind her as a friend."

              Raven chuckled and shook her head. "Just a friend?"

              "Yes, Raven," Clarke insisted. "Just a friend. You know I'm not looking for anything else."

              Raven rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated breath. "Why not? She keeps you on your toes. She's perfect for you."

              "First of all, we'd drive each other crazy - we're both too headstrong to last in a relationship. Second of all, I want to remain single. If I do decide to be with anyone, I'd want it to be a casual thing. I'm incapable of love."

              The ortho surgeon groaned. "Clarke, you are not incapable of love."

              "I'm in my late twenties and I've never been in love. I was with Finn for two years and I never felt more than a strong liking for him. I should've never wasted either of our time. If I had broken things off sooner, then maybe-,"

              "Stop," Raven said, gently, placing a hand on top of Clarke's. "That car accident wasn't your fault."

              Clarke sighed. "I just wish I could go back and do things over. He deserved better."

"You could fall in love one day," Raven assured her. "You just have to put yourself back out there."

              "I've hurt everyone I have ever been with," Clarke stated. "I can't keep doing that."

              Octavia approached the gurney and hopped onto it. "Hey, bitches. What are we talking about?"

              "The love life that I don't want," Clarke answered, miserably. "What's wrong with wanting to be single?"

              "Nothing," Octavia assured her. "Except you and Lexa have ridiculous chemistry. I mean, the sexual tension is-,"

              "No," Clarke cut her off. "There is no sexual tension."

              Octavia grinned. "Okay, no tension of the sexual variety."

              "Aren't you the least bit curious about how Lexa would be in bed, though?" Raven asked.

              "She's most definitely a top," Octavia added. "Two tops could be fun."

              Clarke found herself thinking about it for a moment but then shook the thought from her head. "I don't care if Lexa's a top or bottom. It's not happening."

              "Top, but I can be versatile."

              The doctors on the gurney froze at the sound of the new voice. Clarke reluctantly turned her head to look at Lexa. "Doctor Woods," she greeted as coolly as she could.

              Lexa grinned. "I need a consult, Doctor Griffin."

              "Could've paged me," Clarke stated. "Or even texted." She held up her new work issued smart phone - the hospital was becoming more high-tech and phasing pagers out. "Either of those ways would've prevented this very awkward moment," she added, sheepishly.

              "But then I would've had to wait longer to see you," Lexa pointed out. "So neither of those options suited me."

              Clarke excused herself and got up from the gurney. "What do you need?"

              Lexa gestured down the hall for Clarke to follow her. They fell into step until they turned a corner. "So I don't actually need a consult."

              Clarke stopped walking and Lexa turned to face her. "Lying in order to get me alone?"

              Lexa shoved her hands in her pockets. "I don't need to lie to get you alone but I figured I haven't pissed you off enough today."

              Clarke quirked a brow. “Do you actually need anything?"

              "I have a surprise for you," Lexa said, looking pleased with herself. "Would you like to see it?"

              Clarke eyed Lexa suspiciously. "Yeah, sure." She followed the doctor to a room and watched as Lexa hung up several x-rays. She looked at Lexa, who simply gestured for her to look at the images. She stepped further into the room and scanned them, quickly realizing what she was looking at. "Wait, is that a toy soldier stuck in his esophagus and three more in his stomach?”

              "Yep," Lexa replied. "Four of them. So do you want in? I know trauma's been slow today. I'm sure you could use something fun."

              "I'm in," Clarke smiled, excitedly. "Please tell me there's a story behind this. Does he suffer from pica?"

              Lexa chuckled. "No medical reason. He claims his brother stole them from his collection so when he was at his house, he swallowed them in order to get them back."

              "People never cease to amaze me with how stupid they can be."

              “I’ve come to expect people to lack common sense,” Lexa said. “So ready to scrub in?”

              "What do you want in return for giving me this surgery?" Clarke asked, thinking maybe this offer didn't come without stipulations.

              Lexa began to gather the x-rays from the wall. "I don’t have a motive here, Clarke. I just figured you’d enjoy taking part in a cool surgery with yours truly.” Lexa placed the x-rays back in her patient’s folder and made her way to the door. “Oh, and this gives us a chance to talk about what I should wear to your dad’s birthday party. I have a sundress I could pull out of the back of my closet.”

              Clarke’s mind flashed to images of Lexa in a sundress with her well-toned legs. “It’s whatever you want to wear,” she finally answered.

              Lexa smirked. “Imagining what you want to do to me in a dress isn’t very platonic, Clarke.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “That is _not_ what I was doing.”

              Lexa winked at the blonde before slipping out of the room.  Clarke shook her head. Her dad’s birthday party was definitely going to be an interesting one.

             

 

             

Few days later…

 

              Clarke pulled up to her parents' place and looked over at Lexa. "I'm telling you now that my family is crazy."

              Lexa chuckled. "I think I have you beat in the crazy family category but we'll see." Lexa undid her seatbelt and reached into the backseat to retrieve the bottle of wine she had bought for Clarke's father.

              "You really didn't have to buy him anything. That was sweet of you, though. Thank you."

              Before Lexa could comment, there was a knock on Clarke's window, startling the blonde. Lexa laughed as Clarke cursed under her breath before rolling down the window. "Hi, CeCe."

              "Hi, sweetie. It's so good to see you." She looked up and smiled at Lexa before looking back at Clarke. "Your girlfriend is gorgeous," she whispered. "Come on, get out of the car and introduce us."

              Clarke flushed at the woman's words before looking over at a smirking Lexa. "Shut up," she said before getting out of the car to address CeCe. "Actually, Lexa's just a co-worker."

              CeCe grinned. "Do you bring all your co-workers to family get-togethers?"

              "Mom invited her," Clarke said as she looked back at Lexa, who had remained in the car to give them a moment. "She's trying to play matchmaker."

              CeCe watched as Lexa exited the car. The brunette was wearing a Trikru University t-shirt and shorts. “I can see why.”

              “Behave,” Clarke chided before Lexa approached them. “Lexa this is Doctor Cartwig, my mom’s best friend and my godmother. CeCe this is Doctor Woods.”

              “You can call me CeCe.”

              Lexa shook the woman’s hand. “And you can call me Lexa. Do you work at Ark Hospital?” Lexa didn’t remember ever seeing the woman, but it was a big hospital.

              “I used to. I’m at Mount Weather Medical now. I think I remember Abby saying that you transferred from Grounder Medical. What made you want to make that change?”

              Clarke noticed Lexa’s relaxed posture become tense and decided to quickly step in. “Ark Hospital is the number one teaching hospital in the state and Lexa just loves taking interns and residents under her wing. As a matter of fact, I know you give guest lectures at Ark University sometimes. I’m sure Lexa would love to do the same.”

              “That’s a great idea,” CeCe said, excitedly. “Remind me to get your number later, Lexa. We can set something up.”CeCe gestured to the house. “We should head inside.” She looked at Clarke. “I’m sure your mom wants to introduce Lexa around.” She walked ahead of them, leaving Clarke and Lexa to talk.

              “I hate you,” Lexa whispered as they slowly followed behind Cece.

              Clarke grinned. “I believe you mean ‘thank you, Clarke. You’re the best.’”

              “Okay, point one to you, Griffin.” Lexa stopped at the front door to allow Clarke to walk through first. “And Clarke.” Clarke turned her head to look at the brunette. “Thank you.”

              Clarke smiled and continued to follow CeCe towards the kitchen where she could hear laughter. She hoped her family would behave a bit more reserved around Lexa but she was sure a new face would only cause them to be even more rambunctious.

 

 

 

              Clarke watched as her father laughed at something Lexa said. He was working the grill while nursing a beer in one hand and Lexa stood beside him clearly telling a story from all the hand gestures she was doing. Abby moved to stand beside her daughter and nudged her with her elbow. “Looks like your dad is getting along with Lexa. Everyone thinks she’s great.”

              “Who’s great?” Clarke’s grandmother, Cheryl, asked from behind them.

              “No one, Grandma,” Clarke answered.

              “Lexa,” Abby said, ignoring Clarke’s glare.

              “Oh she is great,” the woman agreed. "I'm glad to see you dating.”

              Clarke had given up on correcting her family when it came to the status of her and Lexa's relationship. They made their assumptions and ran with it. Her mother didn't help any either.

              Lexa approached them with an amused smile on her face. "Clarke, I think your father is cooler than you."

              Clarke let out a light laugh. "That's probably true."

              Clarke's grandmother placed a hand to her chest. "It's so cute to see you getting along with Jake. He's so picky about who Clarke dates."

              Lexa grinned, knowing Clark had tried to correct the woman several times to no avail. She decided to give it a go for the blonde’s sake. "We're actually not dating. We're just friends."

              Cheryl paused for a moment before a mischievous glint showed in her eyes. "Friends with benefits is no big deal. If I were a few decades younger, I might even let you-,"

              "Grandma!" Clarke cut her off before the woman could scar her for life.

              Cheryl laughed. "Don't be such a prude, Clarke. I know how it is with you young ones. Got to get it in when you can."

              "Ohmygod." Clarke looked at her mother for help.

              Abby simply shrugged. "She's been saying what she wants for years."

              Clarke shook her head before giving Lexa an apologetic look but she could tell the brunette was thoroughly amused by this conversation.

              Jake approached the women and smiled, happily. “Sorry ladies, I have to steal Lexa away. I told her I’d show her the paintings around the house.”

              Clarke’s eyes widened. “Dad,” she whined, not wanting him to show off her work.

              “They’re great paintings, Clarke. People should get to admire them,” Jake insisted. “She’s probably already seen a few just walking through the house.”

              “Then I’ll show them to her.” Clarke wanted a reason to get away from her prying family.

              Lexa held out her elbow for Clarke to link her arm through. The blonde rolled her eyes and placed her arm through Lexa’s. “Lead the way.”

              “We’ll be back,” Clarke said to the others before entering the house with Lexa.

              “Your family is really nice,” Lexa said as they made their way into the living room.

              “And embarrassing,” Clarke added with a smile. “But yeah they’re pretty great.” She stopped in front of a painting and gestured to it. “Here’s one.”

              Lexa was surprised at the level of detail in the atmospheric painting. “Okay, I figured they’d be decent, but Clarke, this is amazing.”

              “You don’t have to say that,” Clarke said.

              “I’m serious.” Lexa looked at Clarke. “This is good. I’d love to see more.”

              Clarke realized their arms were still linked together and pulled her arm away. “There’s this one,” she moved to another wall in the room.

              Lexa followed her and looked at the painting of a night sky. She smiled. It reminded her of her childhood. She remained silent for almost minute as she admired it before speaking. “I didn’t always want to be a doctor,” she admitted. “I know I told you differently. I’m sorry for lying.”

              Clarke didn’t say anything. She simply waited for Lexa to continue.

              “I wanted to be a soldier. When I told my parents that I wanted to enlist, they lost it. Their only child wasn’t going to join the military. They had my life mapped out so I never strayed from their plans.” Lexa reached out and lightly trailed her fingers over the painting. “When I was a kid up until I turned seventeen, I would sneak outside almost every night to look up at the stars no matter how cold it was. It was the only time I felt at peace.” Lexa moved her hand from the painting and looked at Clarke. “This painting reminds me of those times.”

              “Lexa,” Clarke began but was interrupted when her little cousin ran into the living room.

              “It’s cake time!” He grabbed Clarke and Lexa by the hand and began to pull them towards the backyard.

              “Lucas, give us a moment, buddy,” Clarke said, wanting to finish her conversation with Lexa.

              Lexa laughed lightly as the boy stopped tugging at their arms and turned around with a look of astonishment. “But there’s cake!” the six-year old stated.

              “Yeah, Clarke.” Lexa picked the boy up and tossed him over her shoulder. “It’s cake time.” Lucas laughed as Lexa carried him out of the house and Clarke watched as the vulnerable Lexa she had been speaking to moments ago was replaced with another side of the brunette that Clarke also enjoyed.  

 

 

 

              Lexa was talking to another one of Clarke’s family members when she noticed Clarke slip into the house. She excused herself and made her way inside as well to check on her. “Clarke?”

              “Kitchen,” Clarke called out.

              Lexa made her way there and saw the blonde pouring herself a glass of wine. “Does this mean I’m the designated driver?”

              “We’re probably stuck here for a few more hours,” Clarke replied. “Unless you really want to leave.”

              Lexa shook her head and leaned against the counter opposite Clarke. “I’m fine. I’d be enjoying myself more, though, if we got to spend more time together.” Lexa had been busy talking to Clarke’s family and playing games with the kids so she hadn’t gotten a lot of one-on-one time with Clarke.

              Clarke sipped her wine and reached for Lexa’s hand. The action surprised herself more than Lexa but she kept hold of the brunette’s hand as she led her out of the kitchen and up the stairs. When she reached her old room, she released Lexa’s hand to open the door.

              “Are we about to fulfill some fantasy you have about having sex while your parents are home?”

              Clarke reached out to lightly hit Lexa’s shoulder. “Shut up, we won’t be bothered up here.” She closed the door and finished her wine, placing it on the nightstand before moving to lie down on her bed. She let out a breath and relaxed into the soft mattress. “I didn’t realize how tired I was. Family events are draining.” Lexa stood by the bed looking down at Clarke, unsure of if she should lie down too or sit at the desk nearby. Clarke turned her head to look at the brunette. “Stop staring. Lay down.”

              Lexa laid down on the bed and looked up at the ceiling, chuckling when she saw an elaborate forest drawn on it. “You really are talented, Clarke.”

              “Thank you,” Clarke replied. “You are, too.”

              “Yeah, at being a doctor. I don’t have anything outside of that.”

              “Well, you could still find a hobby you enjoy,” Clarke stated. “What’s something you like that doesn’t involve anything medical?”

              “I like you.”

              Clarke smiled but let out an impatient huff. “Be serious or I’ll stop being nice to you.”

              “I was being serious,” Lexa replied with a grin. “But fine, I’ve always liked to cook.”

              “Hey, me too. My dad taught me when I was little. It was our thing until I got too busy with college.”

              “Maybe we can cook together some time.”

              “You think we can work in a kitchen together without getting on each other’s nerves?”

              “You do like me better outside of the hospital so I’m thinking we’ll be okay,” Lexa replied.

              The door to the room opened and CeCe grinned at the sight of them. “There you two are. Your mother’s looking for you, Clarke. Should I tell her you’re busy?”

              “I’m not busy,” Clarke said as she got up from the bed as if she were a teen getting caught in the act. “Stop smiling at me like that.” She moved past the woman and headed downstairs to see what her mother wanted.

              CeCe looked back at Lexa. “Sorry if I interrupted something.”

              Lexa waved her off. “You didn’t. It’s okay.”

              “Can I be the meddling godmother for a moment?”

              “Go for it,” Lexa said, curious as to what the woman was about to say.

              “Clarke has it in her mind that she’s not made for relationships and I think she just hasn’t found the right person. I can tell she likes you and you seem interested so if you are, just be patient with her, please.”

              “We’re just friends but if that happens to change, I’ll keep your words in mind.”

              “Thank you,” CeCe said, before gesturing down the hall. “We better go join the others.”

              Lexa exited the room and followed her downstairs to the backyard where Clarke was laughing at something Abby had said. The sound made the brunette smile. She was definitely stepping into dangerous territory and she didn’t want to turn back.  

 

 

 

              Lexa stopped outside of her apartment and shoved her hands into her pockets. “So, that was fun, right?”

              Clarke nodded. “It was. Thanks for driving back. I didn’t mean to drink as much as I did.”

              Lexa laughed. “I just can’t believe your grandmother beat you in a drinking game.”

              “That woman can party hard. You would’ve lost, too.”

              “Possibly,” Lexa replied. She heard a bang at Clarke’s door and then loud whispering. “Have a goodnight, Clarke,” she said with a grin. “Raven. Octavia,” she greeted them through the door before entering her apartment.

              The front door opened as soon as Lexa disappeared and Clarke was met with expectant looks. “Nothing happened,” she said as she entered the apartment. “It wasn’t a date or anything like that. I told you guys.”

              Raven rolled her eyes and Octavia let out a dramatic sigh before they headed back into the living room. “She’s hot, Clarke,” Raven began. “You should get on that. Literally.”

              “Seriously,” Octavia added. “We could feel the sexual tension through the door. That’s the only reason we knew you were home. How was your dad’s birthday party?”

              “It was nice,” Clarke replied as she moved to sit beside her friends. “Lexa got along with everyone. My father adores her and my grandmother thinks we’re friends with benefits.”

              Octavia laughed. “That had to be an awkward conversation.”

              “It wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been,” Clarke replied. “And I have to admit, I like Lexa a lot as a friend. She’s not what I expected at all.” Clarke stood up from the couch. “I’m off to bed but I’ll see you two in the morning.”

              “Night.” Raven watched Clarke disappear into her room before looking at Octavia. “She’s into her.”

              “Totally,” Octavia agreed. “How long do you think she’ll try to fight it?”

              “Knowing Clarke, probably forever.”

              Octavia sighed. “I hope she doesn’t let Lexa slip through her fingers.”

              “I guess we just have to sit back and see how things play out.”

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

 

 

              Days had passed and Clarke hadn't spent much time with Lexa outside of the hospital. The trauma surgeon wanted to invite her fellow doctor over for a movie night or something equally as laidback but for some reason she wasn't sure how to approach her about it. She thought it was stupid to be this nervous about it but she wrote it off as her just being weird.

              "Earth to Clarke." Bellamy waved his hand in front of her face as she leaned against the front desk lost in thought.

              Clarke shook her head, snapping back to reality. "What?"

              Bellamy smirked. "Thinking about a certain doctor?"

              Clarke scoffed. "No, shut up."

              Bellamy sighed. "Just ask her out. You already know she'll say yes."

              "I don't want to go out with Lexa... or anyone. How many times do I have to say it?" Clarke picked up a clipboard from the desk and began to scan over it.

              Bellamy took the clipboard from her and set it back down. "You like her."

              Clarke rolled her eyes. "As a friend. I can use friends. I don't need a girlfriend and I don't need everyone telling me how I feel."

              Bellamy laughed. "Denial. It's the first stage."

              Octavia walked into the ER and looked from Bellamy to Clarke. "Have either of you heard from Woods? She's not responding to my messages or phone calls and I haven't done anything to piss her off yet. She’s only twenty minutes late but even that’s a lot for her."

              Clarke frowned and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket without a word. She had left her apartment before Lexa so she hadn't seen her but it wasn't like her to be late.

              _Clarke[8:50am]: Everything okay? You’re never late._

              Clarke looked back up at Octavia. "I'll tell you if I hear back from her."

              "I guess I'll just have to push her surgeries back," Octavia sighed. "I hope she's okay. This isn't like her."

              “I’m sure she’s fine,” Clarke said, sounding more confident than she felt. “Give her another half hour. If she doesn’t show, I’ll send an intern to her apartment.”

              Clarke and Bellamy’s cellphones beeped and they quickly read the alert. “We need to head to the ambulance bay. They’re going to be coming in real heavy,” Bellamy announced.

              Clarke looked at the nurses in the ER. “Page all available surgeons and get this ER clear.

Discharge the patients that are okay to leave. Get more gurneys, beds and crash carts down here _now_. Let’s save lives, people.”

              While the nurses got to work, Clarke and Bellamy rushed out to the ambulance bay donning gloves and surgical gowns. “Not a great day for Lexa to be a no-show,” Bellamy said.

              “I’m sure she has a reason,” Clarke replied.

              Octavia, Raven, Abby, Kane and Wells rushed out to the ambulance bay, ready for whatever was coming. “Do we know what’s going on?” Raven asked as she pulled gloves on.

              “Not yet,” Bellamy answered. “Hey, have any of you heard from Woods?”

              Abby furrowed her brows. “A nurse told me she called a little over half an hour ago. Said she was stuck in traffic. She must still be on her way.”

              An ambulance pulled up and the backdoors were quickly pushed open and an EMT jumped out. “Sixteen-year old female. Severe brain trauma, lacerations to her face and neck, possible internal hemorrhaging,” the woman rushed out as she helped her partner unload the gurney.

              “What’s going on?” Raven asked.

              “Road rage. Some guy fired his gun at another driver and it caused a huge accident.”

              “Do we know who the shooter is?” Bellamy asked.

              “He’s in police custody.”

              Bellamy and Kane pushed the gurney into the ER and three more ambulances pulled up. Clarke rushed over to one and when the doors opened, she was surprised to see Lexa straddling a man on a gurney with both her hands in his chest.

              “GSW to the chest, severe concussion and he’s crashed three times already,” Lexa said as the EMTs unloaded the gurney with her still on it.

              Octavia stared wide-eyed at the scene. “Are you performing an open-chest cardiac massage?”

              “As my last ditch effort to keep him alive, yes,” Lexa replied as Octavia and Clarke began to push the gurney inside the hospital.

              Clarke took note of the blood running down from the cut on Lexa’s forehead. “You need a head CT and stitches.”

              “I currently have my finger plugging a bullet hole in this man’s heart,” Lexa stated.

              “Octavia page my mom.” Clarke looked back at Lexa. “Switch?”

              Lexa grinned. “You want to be under me, Clarke?”

              Clarke rolled her eyes but a smile tugged at her lips. “Inappropriate. Now move your ass.” Clarke moved her hand to the man’s chest, replacing Lexa’s finger with her own.  She continued the cardiac massage as she looked over at Monty. “Doctor Green, Lexa needs a head CT and stitches. Make sure she gets them both before she does anything else.”

              Lexa got off of the gurney and watched as Abby rushed in to assist Clarke. She looked at Monty who looked petrified to be this close to her. She looked down at her bloodstained clothes and sighed. “I need a shower.”

              “Um, Doctor Griffin said-,”

              “I’ll be five minutes,” Lexa said as she walked off.

              “Um, okay.” Monty began to follow the woman down the hall towards the locker room.

              “Doctor Green, what are you doing?” Lexa asked.

              “I’m going to stand outside of the locker room until you’re done,” Monty answered. “And then I’m going to give you stitches and a CT scan.”

              “How about while I’m showering, you get me a cup of coffee?” Lexa said as she stopped outside of the locker room. “I didn’t get a chance with the shooting and multiple pile car crash. Thanks.”

              Lexa disappeared into the locker room and Monty sighed. “She’s so scary,” he whispered to himself before going to get her coffee.

 

 

              Clarke approached Monty who was stitching up a patient’s leg. “Hey, where’s Doctor Woods?” She was tired from her back-to-back surgeries all day but the moment she finished her last surgery, she had gone to look for the brunette and couldn’t find her.

              “In one of the on-call rooms,” Monty answered as he focused on doing his sutures. “She did her own stitches with no anesthesia. I’m seriously afraid of that woman.”

              Clarke chuckled. “Was her head CT clear?”

              “She just has a mild concussion. Everything else is fine,” Monty answered. “She worked in the ER all day while you and Bellamy were doing surgeries.”

              “Thanks, Monty,” Clarke said before heading off to find the brunette. She decided to go to the room that the brunette favored and smiled when she found Lexa asleep in the room. She quietly made her way in and studied Lexa for a moment before waking her. “Hey,” she said gently as she shook her shoulder.

              “It has not been two hours,” Lexa said, tiredly as she swatted at the hand.

              “Sorry,” Clarke smiled. “I figured I’d give you a ride home unless you want to crash at the hospital for the night.”

              Lexa opened her eyes. “A ride home would be nice.” She sat up and ran a hand through her hair. “Did you save hole-in-the-heart?”

              Clarke chuckled. “He’s stable. You gave him a real chance at survival. Come on, let’s get you to bed.”

              Lexa smirked as she got up. “Taking advantage of me in my weakened state, Clarke? Not that I mind.”

              Clarke shook her head as she opened the door. “You wish, Woods.”

              “I really do,” Lexa said, winking at Clarke before exiting the room.

             

 

              Lexa laughed as Clarke told her about her first year as an intern. “I can’t believe within minutes of starting your internship you called the chief of trauma an over cocky idiot with a god-complex.”

              “He was,” Clarke insisted. “I’m glad he transferred out of state. I wouldn’t have been able to put up with him every day.”

              “Is that how you saw me?” Lexa queried.

              “No,” Clarke replied. “You’re just agitating. And you’re not cocky-you’re confident, which I find sexy.”

              Lexa grinned. “You think I’m sexy?”

              “That is not what I said. I said your _confidence_ is sexy,” Clarke clarified as she reached for her glass of water sitting on the table.

              “I’m attached to that confidence so technically, you find me sexy.”

              “Right now I’m finding you-,”

              “Be nice,” Lexa cut her off. “You’re supposed to be my caretaker for the night.”

              “Doesn’t mean I have to be nice to you.” Clarke set her water down and rested her head on the couch. “Can I ask you a serious question?”

              “Sure,” Lexa replied, curious as to what Clarke wanted to know. She mirrored Clarke’s position, resting her head on the couch and tilted her head to the side to look at her.

              “The woman you were with for three months,” Clarke began. “What was she like?” Lexa was silent for so long that Clarke thought that she had made the brunette uncomfortable. She was about to apologize when Lexa finally spoke up.

              “She was adventurous, sweet, smart and fun. I was all work and no play when I met her. I lived for my career. My parents want me to be the best so I have strived my entire life to be someone they could be proud of. I told you about them flipping out when I wanted to join the military- one moment where I try to do something I want… to be myself and they lost it so I never let it happen again… until I met Costia. She taught me how to be myself. She showed me that it was okay to have fun and enjoy life. I smiled more in the three months we were together than I had my entire life. I knew the moment I met her that she was going to be someone special to me.”

              “How’d you know?” Clarke had never felt that way for another person. Not romantically, anyway. She had her best friends but never a love like the one Lexa was describing.

              “I just knew,” Lexa replied in almost a whisper. Lexa looked up at the ceiling, avoiding Clarke’s gaze as she continued. “She was a patient.”

              Clarke’s eyes widened slightly. “One of your patients?”

              “Yes. She had cardiomyopathy. She was doing well two months of us being together but that last month was rough. She needed a heart transplant but the odds weren’t on her side. She was given two months to live. She decided to break-up with me. She wanted me to be happy with someone I could live a long life with. She moved to live with her parents for her last month and I haven’t spoken to her since. She disconnected her phone and cut all ties.”

              Clarke placed her hand on top of Lexa’s in a show of compassion. “That must’ve been a hard time for you.”

              “It was. Another doctor found out about us. He told the chief of surgery and I barely kept my job. I was forced to take leave but it was better than being suspended. When I came back I was put on an unofficial probation. I couldn’t do a simple suture without my chief of surgery breathing down my neck.”

              “Is that why you transferred?” Clarke asked.

              Lexa shook her head. “No, I could handle the backlash of my choices. Everything had gone back to normal after a few weeks but as the months passed, I just couldn’t handle who I had reverted back to. I didn’t want to be the Lexa that my parents had forced me to be. Grounder Medical is where they built their careers. Their legacy is all over that place. It was suffocating me.”

              Clarke remembered a conversation they had before. “That’s what you meant by moving here being your second chance.”

              “Yeah, but I haven’t been really doing that right either,” Lexa admitted. “I spend my alone time reading medical books and practicing sutures. The most fun I have is when-,” Lexa sighed and stood up. “Sorry, my head is starting to hurt.”

              Clarke missed the warmth of Lexa’s hand under her own. She stood up and reached for the brunette’s wrist. “The most fun you have is when, Lexa?”

              Lexa gazed into blue eyes and offered up a tired smile. “Look, I don’t want to say anything wrong here so maybe we should call it a night.”

              “I can’t leave,” Clarke reminded her. “You have a concussion.”

              Lexa waved her off. “I’ll be fine. I probably won’t even sleep. Maybe I’ll finally unpack these boxes. If they’re still here when Anya visits again, I’ll never hear the end of it. She thinks-,”

              Clarke leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Lexa’s lips. Lexa was stunned for a moment but once her brain caught up, she kissed back. Clarke reveled in the gentle press of their lips together, bringing her hand to rest on Lexa’s lower back as the brunette placed a hand on the back of her neck.

              A knock at the door caused them to break apart. Clarke took several steps back. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen.”

              The knock sounded again. “Lexa.”

              Lexa sighed at the sound of Anya’s voice. The woman had horrible timing. She went over to the door and opened it. “You didn’t have to come here.”

              Anya brought her hand up to grip Lexa’s chin and turned the brunette’s head to the side as she looked at her stitches. “Of course I did. Besides, who else was going to look after you?” She spotted Clarke and smirked. “Oh. Sorry, I didn’t think you would have company.”

              “She was trying to kick me out anyway,” Clarke said as she grabbed her keys from the coffee table. “I’ll see you later, Lexa.” Clarke waved goodbye to Anya and slipped out of the apartment.

              “Why am I choking on sexual tension right now?” Anya asked. Lexa sighed and plopped down on the couch, wondering how long it would be before Clarke would speak to her again.  

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Two days later…

 

              Clarke saw Lexa entering the ER and quickly grabbed the closest person to her, forcing them to stand in front of her so she wouldn’t be in Lexa’s line of sight.

              Monty stood confused for several seconds before speaking. “What are we doing?” He whispered.

              Clarke peeked over Monty’s shoulder and saw that Lexa had been stopped by Harper, one of the nurses. She frowned as Harper laughed at something Lexa said and she could see the obvious signs of the nurse flirting with the surgeon. Clarke rolled her eyes and decided to get out of dodge before Lexa noticed her.

              “Doctor Griffin, I have to deliver these x-rays to Doctor Reyes,” Monty said.

              Clarke pulled the file from Monty’s hand. “I’ll do it. It’s slow today. I could use the busy work.”

              Lexa spotted Clarke leaving the ER and smiled politely at Harper. “Sorry, I need to speak to Doctor Griffin. We’ll talk later.”

              “Yeah, of course,” Harper said before the doctor walked away.

              Bellamy moved to stand beside Harper with a knowing grin on his face. “Not happening.”

              Harper looked at him innocently. “What are you talking about?”

              “Doctor Woods is off limits,” Bellamy explained. “A friend of mine is interested.”

              Harper grinned. “Well that friend of yours better hurry up.”

             

 

              “Clarke,” Lexa called to the blonde as she neared her. “May I have a word, please?”

              “I have to get these files to Raven,” Clarke replied without looking at the brunette.

              Lexa rolled her eyes and gently caught the trauma surgeon by her upper arm, forcing her to turn around. “Can we just talk about what happened? You can’t just-.” Lexa’s phone beeped and she sighed as she pulled it out of her pocket. “I have to go but we’re talking about this later.”

              “I’ve got a busy day- traumas left and right.”

              Lexa smirked. “You’re a horrible liar,” she said before rushing down the hall to get to where she needed to be.

             

 

              Later that day, Lexa approached Octavia, who was waiting to buy a cup of coffee in the cafeteria line. “Blake, can I use your phone?”

              Octavia reached into her pocket and pulled out the phone. “Yeah, sure.” Lexa quickly typed out a message before handing it back to Octavia. “Thanks.” Octavia watched Lexa walk away and shook her head. She didn’t know what was going on between Clarke and Lexa, but she knew the two were avoiding each other right now.

              Lexa made her way to an empty room and leaned against the wall. She was waiting for several minutes before the door opened and Clarke entered. “You’ve been avoiding me.”

              Clarke turned to face the brunette. “Lexa-,”        

              “We kissed,” Lexa said. “We kissed and it was nice. I mean, I enjoyed it. Obviously you didn’t because you’ve been going to great lengths to avoid me.”

              “Look,” Clarke sighed. “I did like the kiss but it shouldn’t have happened. I don’t want to give off mixed signals. I enjoy being around you, Lexa. I want to continue to be your friend if that’s what you still want.”

              Lexa smiled. “I do still want to be friends, Clarke. See how easy that was? We talked it out and now we’re back on the right track.”

              Clarke returned the smile. “Very adult stuff.” She visibly relaxed. “I’m sorry for avoiding you.”

              “Already moved on from it,” Lexa assured her. “I think I want to cook dinner tonight. If you’re feeling up to it, you can join me- for the cooking part. Not sure yet if I want you over for dinner.”

              Clarke looked at the woman in disbelief. “You want me to cook with you but not eat?”

              Lexa grinned. “Might be too intimate of a setting. You’ll take off on me again. And just out of curiosity, why did you kiss me?”

              Clarke scratched the top of her head. “Why do you need to know?”

              “I don’t know about you but when a gorgeous woman kisses me out of nowhere, I like to know what sparked it. Mostly so I can do whatever I did again with the same end result sans the running away.”

              Clarke narrowed her eyes at Lexa. “I’m not kissing you again. It was a momentary lapse of judgement. So when is this cooking taking place?”

              “Very nice momentary lapse of judgement. When can you get out of here?” Lexa asked.

              “Seven,” Clarke replied.

              “That works. I better get back to work.” Lexa went to open the door but stopped with her hand on the knob. She turned her head to look at the trauma surgeon. “And maybe this time we can talk about you.”

              “There’s not much to say,” Clarke stated.

              “Yeah, I don’t believe that,” Lexa grinned. “You enjoy your day, Doctor Griffin.”

              Clarke watched Lexa exit the room and let out a breath. She was definitely feeling something for her fellow surgeon but she couldn’t go down that path. She couldn’t.

 

 

 

              “I can’t believe you didn’t tell us you kissed her the night it happened!” Octavia whispered loudly to Clarke as they sat in the cafeteria.

              “Yeah, Clarke,” Raven added. “That is important information to be shared with best friends. So are you admitting that you have a thing for her?”

              Clarke poked her food with her fork. “Yeah, I guess I am,” she said, miserably. “Lexa is really…she’s- I don’t know, just really great in her own infuriating way. I like having her around. I don’t want to ruin whatever we have with stupid feelings.”

              “Dating her doesn’t mean anything will be ruined,” Raven assured her. “So what you’ve never been in love and you’ve broken the heart of every person you’ve ever dated. That doesn't mean you should swear off relationships."

              Clarke frowned as she placed her fork down. "Was that supposed to be motivational because it didn't help me feel better?"

              "What Raven failed to communicate, is that you've got to allow yourself the opportunity to fall. Maybe Lexa won't be the one but you'll never know unless you put yourself out there."

              "I don't want to break her heart," Clarke sighed. "I don't want to ruin her like I seem to do everyone else. She's been through enough."

              "But you have a crush on her," Raven stated.

              Clarke shrugged. "That means nothing. I liked Finn. I just don't have the capacity to really fall in love. I'm broken. And I don't get it. My parents are madly in love. I had a great example growing up. Maybe I need therapy."

              "You're thinking too much," Octavia said. "You just need to go with the flow. See what happens."

              Clarke's phone buzzed and she picked it up from beside her food tray. "Gotta go. I'll see you two later."

              Raven watched her best friend leave and groaned. "Is it bad that I want to punch sense into her? Lexa is perfect for her."

              "She's got to figure this out on her own," Octavia said. "We’re not taking any action, remember? We'll just stick to commentary.  They're both adults. They can sort out their feelings on their own."

              Raven looked at Octavia with a look of disagreement. "I'm going to get a headache watching those two figure their shit out.”

 

 

              Clarke was in the operating room with her mother when the woman brought up Clarke coming over for dinner.

              "I can't," Clarke replied as she kept her attention on the task at hand. "I have plans."

              "What kind of plans?" Abby asked, curiosity heavy in her voice. "Is it with anyone I know?"

              "I'm just having dinner with a friend," Clarke said, simply, hoping her mother wouldn't push for more information.

              "Is that friend Doctor Woods?" Abby asked, innocently.

              "Yes, if you must know," Clarke answered. She was sure her mother was smiling under her surgical mask.

              "Is it a date?" Abby continued.

              "No."

              "Why not?"

              "Because it's just not." 

              "Clarke, your father and I are worried about you. We don't want you to be alone."

              "I'm not alone. I have my friends." Clarke glanced at her mother. "Did you scrub in on this surgery with me so you could hold an intervention?"

              “We just want you to be happy,” Abby said.

              “I am,” Clarke assured her. “Stop worrying.” Abby decided to drop things for now but she would definitely be keeping an eye on the two doctors to see how things progressed between them.

 

 

 

               That night, Clarke was in Lexa’s kitchen cutting up carrots while the brunette worked at the stove. Clarke had been thinking about Lexa and Harper, but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know what was going on between the two. Curiosity won out and she turned her head to glance at the woman. “So you and Harper seem to be getting along.”

              Lexa smirked as she moved away from the stove so she could stand beside Clarke at the counter. “She’s nice.” She leaned her back against the counter and looked at the blonde.

              “She is,” Clarke agreed as she tried to ignore the fact that Lexa was staring at her. “I didn’t know you two were friends.”

              Lexa shrugged. “New development.”

              Clarke finished cutting the carrots and set the knife down as she finally looked at Lexa. “It’s good that you’re making friends.”

              “I’m not interested in her,” Lexa stated. “Not in the way that you’re thinking.”

              Clarke blushed lightly, hoping Lexa didn’t notice. “I wasn’t thinking anything.”

              “Either way, I’m just informing you, a friend, on what’s going on in my personal life. That’s what friends do, right?”

              Clarke cleared her throat. “Right.” She spotted sauce all over the front of Lexa’s shirt and let out a light laugh. “You’re a mess,” she gestured to the shirt. “I told you to wear an apron.”

              Lexa looked down at her shirt. “I don’t own an apron.”

              “Too cool for one, huh?” Clarke picked up the cutting board and brushed the carrots into the pot on the stove.

              “Definitely.” Lexa checked the chicken in the oven before closing it back. “Should be ready soon. Want a glass of wine or something?”

              “Actually, I could use a cup of coffee,” Clarke said.

              Lexa chuckled. “Plan on keeping me up all night, Clarke?”

              “You’re an idiot,” Clarke said, light-heartedly as she moved towards the Keurig machine to make herself a cup of coffee.

              Lexa decided to start cleaning up some of the mess they made while cooking. The two were silent- Clarke waiting for her coffee to be ready and Lexa wiping down the counter and dropping some things into the sink. When Clarke’s coffee finished, she picked it up and turned to ask Lexa for some creamer, but didn’t realize the brunette was about to walk past her and ended up bumping the cup against the brunette’s stomach.

              “Shit!” They both exclaimed. Clarke set the coffee cup down and quickly ran water over her hand while Lexa pulled off her shirt. “I am so sorry,” Clarke said as she dried her hands and moved over to the brunette. “Are you okay?” She saw a pink spot on Lexa’s stomach where the coffee had soaked through her shirt. She reached out without a thought and ran her fingers over it.

              “If you wanted my shirt off, you just had to ask,” Lexa joked. “Burning me with coffee is a bit extreme.”

              Clarke looked into Lexa’s eyes and then down at her lips before she realized that she was still touching Lexa. “Sorry,” she said again as she moved her hand. She tried not to look down at Lexa’s bra-clad chest. It wasn’t the first time she had seen the brunette topless. She saw that in the locker room all the time just not at this proximity. “Um…”

              Lexa quirked a brow. “Hey, you’re okay, right?”

              Clarke backed away from Lexa and leaned against the counter. She ran a hand through her hair and let out a breath. “You’re just… really attractive. It’s distracting.”

              “Sorry?” Lexa replied, amused.

              Clarke folded her arms across her chest and stared at the brunette as she tried to get her thoughts together. “Lust,” she blurted out, earning a confused look from Lexa. “That’s what this is,” she gestured between them. “It’s lust. I haven’t been with anyone in a long time. Even with my ex… we stopped- I didn’t…” Clarke sighed. “We didn’t have an intimate relationship near the end of things.”

              “Are you saying you’re attracted to me because you’re horny?” Lexa asked.

              “I’m saying maybe I just need to get it out of my system,” Clarke explained. “Two consenting adults having sex. That’s it.”

              Lexa stepped towards Clarke. “That sounds like trouble.”

              Clarke shook her head. “You’re right. That was a stupid suggestion.”

              Lexa leaned forward and kissed Clarke, smiling into it when the blonde returned the kiss with fervor. Clarke moaned when Lexa ended the kiss by nipping at her bottom lip before pulling away. “I should go put a shirt on and then we should have dinner. If you want to do that again, then we can. If not, then we’ll entertain ourselves some other way. Sound good?”

              Clarke sucked her bottom lip between her teeth and simply nodded in response. She watched Lexa walk off and wondered what the hell had gotten into her. She was supposed to be keeping things platonic but she couldn’t seem to get her libido to fall in line with her plans. _One time._ Clarke thought. One night of bliss between them wouldn’t change anything, right?

Dinner had been finished half an hour ago and Lexa and Clarke were sitting in the living room talking as if the sexual tension between them was nonexistent. Clarke had run through a mental list of pros and cons during dinner and the cons of sleeping with Lexa definitely outweighed the pros.

              “You’re thinking so hard that thought bubbles are forming above your head. ‘Should I have fantastic sex with the hot cardiothoracic surgeon?’” Lexa said, contemplatively as if she were Clarke.

              “Fantastic sex? Glad to see you’re confident about your abilities,” Clarke said, trying to hide her nervousness.

              Lexa noticed Clarke’s discomfort and grew serious. “Hey, we don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, Clarke. I’m fine doing this- just talking to you. We can take sex off the table. It doesn’t have to be an option.”

              “I want it on the table,” Clarke rushed out. She rolled her eyes when Lexa grinned at the accidental innuendo. “Shut up, that’s not what I meant. I want to do this. One time.”

              “To get it out of our system?”

              “Yes.” Clarke stood up. “So, what do you want to do?”

              Lexa got up as well and reached for the hem of Clarke’s shirt. She pulled her in close and kissed her. “Do you want it on the table because I can definitely make that happen?”

              “Stop talking,” Clarke said before kissing the woman again. Lexa moved to sit on the couch, pulling Clarke to straddle her lap. It was minutes of teasing touches, passionate kisses and light moans before Clarke couldn’t take the foreplay anymore. “Your room,” she breathed out. She got up from Lexa’s lap and followed the brunette to the bedroom. Once in the room, Lexa tugged at Clarke’s shirt and the blonde raised her arms so she could pull it off.

              Lexa trailed kisses along Clarke’s chest and up her neck before nipping at her jaw. She pulled away and met the woman’s lust-filled gaze. “Are you sure about this?” Clarke nodded and reached for Lexa’s shirt. “I need to hear you say it, Clarke,” Lexa said after her shirt had been removed. “Do you want this?”

              “Yes, Lexa. I want this.” There was a desperation in Clarke’s voice- like she would break soon if Lexa didn’t touch her where she wanted her. She trailed her hands over Lexa’s shoulders and down her arms. Once her hands came into contact with Lexa’s, she pulled her towards the bed. She pushed the brunette down onto the edge of the mattress and got down onto her knees. She began to undo the button on Lexa’s jeans but as she went to tug them off, she stopped. “Are you sure about this?”

              “Most definitely.”

              Clarke smiled and removed Lexa’s jeans along with her underwear. She raised one of Lexa’s legs, placing it over her shoulder.

              “Wait, I wanted to do you first,” Lexa said.

              “You can’t always be in charge,” Clarke informed her before moving her head between Lexa’s thighs. Lexa’s mouth fell open and her hand shot to Clarke’s head as pleasure coursed through her body.

11:00pm…

              Clarke dug her nails into Lexa’s back as the brunette rocked against her, pressing her thigh in just the right spot causing Clarke to feel her impending orgasm. A slew of curse words escaped her lips and she arched her back as euphoria exploded within her. “Fuck,” she gasped out. “God, Lexa, you’re amazing.”

              Lexa pressed a kiss to Clarke’s neck. “And I’m not done,” she said before disappearing down Clarke’s body.

 

12:30am…

              Lexa moaned loudly and bit down into Clarke’s shoulder as an attempt to quiet herself as the blonde pumped three fingers within her. “Harder, Clarke.”

              Clarke smirked and added force to her thrusts. She watched with satisfaction as Lexa’s eyes slammed shut and her mouth fell open. She pressed her thumb to the brunette’s clit and began rubbing circles around it.

              “Ohmygod,” Lexa rushed out before her orgasm hit her full force. Her hips began to buck frantically and Clarke placed her free hand on Lexa’s stomach to keep her down as she continued to move her fingers within her. Lexa let out a squeak as a second orgasm followed closely behind her first. “Fuckfuckfuck!”

              A gush of liquid left Lexa and Clarke’s eyes widened as if she was witnessing the most exquisite thing she had ever seen. “That was amazing. And you totally squeaked.”

              Lexa flung her arm over her eyes as she tried to catch her breath. “I did not squeak.”

              “You definitely did. I wish I had proof.”

              Lexa moved her arm to look at Clarke. “Is that your way of saying you want to make a sex tape?”

              “You’re ridiculous.” She moved her hand up Lexa’s thigh but Lexa quickly turned onto her stomach to avoid her touch. “Too sensitive.”

              Clarke trailed kisses up Lexa’s back until she reached between her shoulder blades. “We were only supposed to do this once.”

              “One time, one night. Same difference,” Lexa stated. “So I think we’re okay.”

              Clarke nipped gently at her shoulder. “Good.”

 

1:45am…

              Lexa rolled off of Clarke and the two looked up at the ceiling as they caught their breath. “We need to go to bed,” Lexa said, tiredly.  

              Clarke hummed her agreement.

              It was silent for a few seconds before Lexa spoke again. “Are you going to head back to your place? I mean, you’re more than welcome to spend the night. It’s whatever you want to do.” When she was met by silence, Lexa looked over at Clarke and realized that she had fallen asleep. Not sure how Clarke would feel about waking up naked next to her, Lexa got out of bed and slipped shorts and a t-shirt on. She pulled the covers over Clarke’s naked frame and pressed a kiss to the woman’s temple. “Sweet dreams, Clarke,” she whispered before grabbing a pillow and heading into the living room.

 

 


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Clarke's eyes slowly fluttered open and she smiled at the ache in her body that reminded her of the night before. She rolled over to see if Lexa was awake and saw that the space was empty. She sat up, holding the bed sheet to her chest, thinking maybe Lexa was already getting ready. She ran a hand through her hair and leaned the back of her head against the headboard. She wondered briefly if things would be awkward between them but knew Lexa wouldn't allow things to be. Deciding to get the morning after over with, Clarke got dressed and exited the room to find the brunette.

              She had been expecting Lexa to be awake and in the kitchen, ready to start her day but she was surprised to see the woman asleep on the couch. Frowning, she moved over to the brunette and gently shook her. "Lexa."

              Lexa turned her head away from Clarke and continued to sleep. Smiling, Clarke shook her again. "We have an hour before we have to be at work. I know how you cherish your attendance."

              Lexa turned her head to look at Clarke. "I'm tired. You kept me up all night."

              Clarke scoffed. "You were the insatiable one." She gestured to the couch. "Why'd you sleep here?"

              "I figured you'd turn into a prude in the morning," Lexa replied as she sat up. "I was giving you your space."

              Clarke rolled her eyes. "How are you so considerate but still such an ass at the same time?"

              Lexa grinned. "It's part of my charm."

              "Well, I didn't mean to ban you to the couch. You could've stayed in your bed. I wouldn’t have minded."

              "I'll remember that for next time," Lexa said as she stood up to stretch.

              "Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Clarke said, even though the thought of a repeat performance definitely held some interest for her. "That was a one-time thing. We agreed."

              Lexa placed a hand on her hip and smiled. "Well that's disappointing because that thing with your tongue was-,"

              "No." Clarke pointed a finger at Lexa, stopping her from continuing. "We are not talking about it. It happened, we both wanted it and now it's done."

              Lexa dropped her hand from her hip. "Do I at least get to know if you found last night satisfactory?"

              "Ohmygod," Clarke groaned out. "Do you need a stroke to your ego or something?" Lexa simply quirked a brow and Clark sighed. "You are amazing in bed. Out of bed- not so much."

              Lexa chuckled. “I know that from how many times you moaned it. What I meant to say is did you get…,” she gestured between them, “this out of your system?”

              Clarke thought about it for a moment. “I did. Now that the sex is out of the way, we can be friends without the tension."

              “Perfect,” Lexa said, amused. "So... coffee?"

              Clarke shook her head. "Thanks, but I should really get back to my apartment and get ready for work."

              "You say that as if you have to travel far," Lexa said.

              "It takes me awhile to get ready," Clarke said.

              Lexa smiled as she eyed the blonde. "You have a natural beauty, Clarke. You don't have to spend too much time on your appearance."

              "I'm still leaving," Clarke said, "but thank you for the compliment."

              "You are very welcome," Lexa said, giving up on getting the woman to keep her company. "I'll see you at work."

              Clarke slipped her shoes on and grabbed her phone from the coffee table. She saw several text messages and quickly scanned through them.

 

_Raven[10:08pm]: It's getting late. Are you staying with Dr. Hotpants?_

_Raven[10:40pm]: Are you finally getting laid?_

_Raven[11:45pm]: Are you spending the night with Lexa???_

_Raven[11:50pm]: Ugh, you suck. See you tomorrow._

_Octavia[10:10pm]: You're totally getting some, aren't you?_

_Octavia[11:51pm]: We want very graphic details tomorrow._

              “Everything okay?” Lexa asked as she watched Clarke read through her messages.

              Clarke looked up from her phone and smiled sheepishly. “Just my friends being their usual nosey selves. I’m probably going to get bombarded with questions the moment I step foot in my apartment. I’ll see you later,” she said as she moved towards the front door. “Last night was fun. We should do it again.” Clarke blushed immediately at her words. “The dinner and hanging out,” she rushed out. “I mean, the sex was fun, too-.”

              Lexa laughed lightly. “Relax, Clarke. I had fun as well.”

              Clarke smiled and slipped out of the apartment. She moved to stand outside of her place and took a deep breath before entering.

              “You!” Raven yelled, excitedly as she leapt up from the couch with Octavia. “You stayed at Lexa’s.”

              “I have to take a shower,” Clarke said as she moved towards the bathroom.

              Octavia followed the woman towards the bathroom. “Because of all the filthy sex you had, right?”

              Clarke stopped outside of the bathroom and turned to face her friends.  “Yes, we had sex. It was a one-time thing and no, I’m not talking about it with you.” Clarke closed the door and began to remove her clothes. She spotted evidence of the night before on her skin and couldn’t help but smile. Bruises and scratches littered her body making images of the night before flash in her mind. She traced her fingers over the hickey at the crook of her neck and thought about how Lexa had bitten her there to stay quiet as she came. Shaking her head, Clarke moved to turn the shower on. She didn’t need to be thinking about sex with Lexa. That whole thing was over and done with.

 

 

 

              Octavia sat down across from Clarke in the cafeteria and smiled widely at her. “I got to take lead in two surgeries today. Lexa’s in a good mood.”

              “Or you’ve proven to her that you can handle it,” Clarke said, knowing where Octavia was going with this.

              “ _Or_ you were just that good last night,” Octavia said. “You totally need to sleep with her again.”

              “Octavia,” Clarke began in a warning tone.

              “Uh oh,” Raven sat down beside Octavia. “I know that tone. What’s going on?”

              Octavia gestured to Clarke. “She doesn’t want to sleep with Lexa on the regular so I can get surgeries.”

              Raven leaned forward on the table and lowered her voice. “I’ve been dying to know how it was.”

              “Not your business,” Clarke said, simply.

              “Clarke,” Raven whined. “Come on. Just give me a number. On a scale of one to ten, how good was it? Ten being the best.” Raven and Octavia pouted, hoping for an answer.

              Clarke rolled her eyes as a smile played at her lips. “Eleven.”

              Octavia bounced excitedly in her seat. “No wonder you didn’t come home.”

              “Not surprising,” Raven grinned. “Lexa looks like a good time.” She wiggled her eyebrows for emphasis.

              Lexa chose that moment to walk into the cafeteria and Clarke decided that she wanted the brunette to sit with them. She fixed her friends with stern looks. “Behave.” She was about to wave Lexa over when she saw the surgeon get called over to another table by Harper.

              Raven watched Lexa sit down at Harper’s table before looking at Clarke. “What’s with those two? They’ve been talking a lot.”

              “They’re just friends,” Clarke replied, trying to not think much of it. She definitely wasn’t jealous. Especially since there was nothing between her and Lexa.

              “Harper’s moving in on your territory,” Octavia sing-songed. “You better get it together before it’s too late, Griffin.”

              “Lexa’s not interested in Harper,” Clarke assured them. “And even if she was, it’s none of my business. She can do whatever with whomever she wants.”

              Raven glanced back at Lexa. “Maybe she will.”

             

 

              Clarke was on her way to the front desk to sign discharge papers when she spotted Lexa sitting in the waiting room with a girl who was probably no more than six. She leaned against the wall and watched the two interact.

              “Your mom is going to be fine,” Lexa said, gently. “I checked on her and my friend, Doctor Reyes, is fixing her right up. Hey, want some ice cream until I can take you to see your mom?” The girl’s face lit up and she nodded frantically. Lexa stood up and smiled when she spotted Clarke. She knelt down and whispered to the girl. “Darcy, that’s my friend, Doctor Griffin.”

              “She’s really pretty,” Darcy said.

              Lexa’s smile widened. “She is. Want to do me a favor?” Darcy nodded and Lexa whispered something in her ear before standing up. She made her way over to Clarke with Darcy by her side. “Clarke, meet Darcy.”

              Clarke smiled down at the girl. “Hi, Darcy.”

              “We’re about to get ice cream,” Darcy said with a big smile. “Want to join us?” Darcy threw in a pout for good measure.

              Clarke looked at Lexa in amused disbelief, which earned her an innocent shrug. She looked back down at Darcy. “Ice cream sounds great.”

              The three began to make their way down the hall and Clarke looked over at the brunette. “Using a kid? That’s not playing fair.”  

              Lexa looked at Clarke innocently as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

              “Sure you don’t,” Clarke said, sarcastically. “You’re paying for my ice cream,” she added as they continued down the hall.

             

             

              Lexa had just finished up with a surgery and was heading towards the locker room with Clarke when Harper approached her.

              “Doctors Woods, an Anya called the hospital looking for you. She said call her back as soon as you can.”

              “Thanks, Harper,” Lexa said, worried that something was wrong.

              Harper smiled. “Yeah, no problem.” The nurse looked at Clarke. “Hi, Clarke.”

              “Harper,” Clarke greeted the woman with faux enthusiasm. She looked back at Lexa and placed a hand on her upper arm. “You better call Anya back. It might be important.”

              “Yeah, I’ll do that right now.” Lexa turned and headed into the locker room.

              “Catch you later, Harper,” Clarke said before following behind Lexa.

              Lexa opened her locker and pulled out her personal cellphone. She called Anya but the woman didn’t answer. She checked her messages from the brunette and quickly became alarmed.

 

_Anya[6:03pm]: Call me! It’s nothing bad. I mean, it’s bad… but no one’s dead or hurt. Just fucking call me._

“Everything okay?” Clarke asked as she got changed.

              “No idea,” Lexa sighed. “Anya’s being cryptic. I’ll call her again when I get outside.” Lexa began to change, hoping Anya would call her back soon so she wouldn’t be left worrying.

              Octavia and Raven entered the locker room and smiled when they saw the two doctors.

              “Woods, you should come over,” Raven said as she began to remove her scrubs. “It’s pizza night.”

              “Pizza sounds good,” Lexa said. “Thanks. I just have to make a phone call.”

              Lexa exited the locker room after gathering her things and Octavia looked to Clarke with a raised eyebrow. “Everything okay?”

              “Not sure yet. Anya’s been trying to reach her,” Clarke replied as she slipped her shoes on. “I’ll see you two at the car.”

              Clarke left the locker room and made her way outside to make sure everything was okay with Lexa. “Hey, you get a hold of her?”

              Lexa moved the phone from her ear with a sigh. “No, she’s not answering.” She looked up from her phone and her eyes widened when she saw a woman exit the hospital behind Clarke.

              “Alexandria Gracelyn Woods,” the woman said, angrily. “I cannot believe you.”

              “Mom,” Lexa tried, but was quickly cut off.

              “You have made a fool of me,” the woman continued. “I went to Grounder Medical expecting to see my daughter but instead I find out that she not only turned down being chief of cardiothoracic surgery-,”

              “Mom,” Lexa tried again.

              “But she also transferred to another hospital without a word of it to her parents. What is going on with you? You’re ruining your life and it started when you decided to shack up with some patient out of sympathy.”

              Lexa clenched her fists at her side. “It wasn’t like that and you know it. Costia-,”

              “Was a bad decision,” Dr. Woods stated. “And we were willing to drop it, but your father and I are worried about you. You’re making ridiculous life choices, Alexandria. It does not look good to-,”

              “I don’t care,” Lexa snapped. “I don’t care who it doesn’t look good to. And you and dad are supposed to want me to be happy. Leaving Grounder Medical was the best thing for me.”

              Dr. Woods shook her head. “This is just you throwing a temper tantrum because of the disagreement we got into about that patient.”

              “She was my girlfriend,” Lexa corrected.

              Dr. Woods took a breath. “She was a mistake. You’re lucky you didn’t get fired over it.”

              Clarke debated stepping in but she had a feeling Lexa wouldn’t want that so she stayed to the side.

              “I was happy with her,” Lexa stated. “She taught me a lot about myself.”

              “She was a black mark on your permanent record,” Dr. Woods retorted. “You’re going to be known as that doctor who dated a dying patient. It was idiotic, Alexandria. Do you know how embarrassing the whole thing is for me and your father?”

              Lexa rolled her eyes. “I’m sure it’s the highlight of all your cocktail parties. Are we done?”

              “No, we’re not done,” Dr. Woods snapped. “You need to-,”

              “Sorry.” Clarke moved to stand beside Lexa. “We have to get going. We have to make it to dinner with the Chief of Cardio. It won’t look good for us to be late.”       

              “Right,” Lexa said, relieved to have an excuse to walk away from her mother. “We do have to go.”

              “Ladies,” Raven said as she exited the hospital. “Are you ready?”

              Clarke tossed Raven her keys. “We’ll meet you there.”

              “Awesome,” Raven said as she made her way to Clarke’s car.  

              Dr. Woods frowned as she looked at Clarke. “And who are you?”

              “Clarke.” Clarke shook Dr. Woods’ hand. “And again, really sorry to cut things short.” Clarke reached for Lexa’s hand and tugged lightly.

              “Bad timing,” Lexa said to her mother as she began to back up. “We’ll talk later,” she added before turning around and making her way to her car. Once inside her vehicle, she looked over at Clarke. “Thank you. I owe you a drink or maybe five.”

              “I’ll hold you to that,” Clarke said. “Your mother’s intense.”

              “She really is,” Lexa said as she started her car. “She thinks everything I do is a reflection on her and my father. I’m not allowed to make mistakes.”

              “That sounds very stressful,” Clarke said, sympathetically. “Are you going to be okay?”

              Lexa nodded. “I’m used to how they are.”

              “Tonight will be fun,” Clarke assured her. “Raven and Octavia are good people to be around when you want to be happy.”

              Lexa smiled. “You’re not so bad yourself, Clarke. Thank you for getting me out of there. I’ll be better prepared to deal with my mother tomorrow.”

              “Anytime.” Clarke was silent for a moment before turning her head to look at Lexa. “Gracelyn?”

              Lexa smiled and blindly reached out to gently shove Clarke. “Shut up.”

              Clarke laughed. “It’s not bad. Just not what I expected your middle name to be. I pictured you with more of a tougher sounding name. Like… Blair or something.”

              “Well, I’m sure my parents are sorry they’ve disappointed you,” Lexa joked. Her phone began to ring and she gestured to the cup holder. “Can you answer that for me? That’s Anya’s ringtone.”

              Clarke picked up the phone and answered the call. Hi, Anya.”

              “Clarke, hi,” Anya greeted her. “Is Lexa around?”

              “She’s driving,” Clarke answered. “She had a run-in with her mom.”

              Anya sighed. “I was trying to warn her but she was in surgery all day. Is she okay?”

              “I think so,” Clarke answered. “But I’m definitely going to make sure she is before the night ends.”

              “Thanks for taking care of her, Clarke,” Anya said. “She needs people she can depend on. Anyway, tell Lexa I’ll call her later. Thanks again.”

              “I’m glad to do it.” Clarke meant those words and she definitely wanted to spend the night making sure Lexa didn’t dwell on the argument she had with her mother.  

 


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Pizza night turned out to be a mini-party with Bellamy, Monty, Jasper, Harper and Wells joining Clarke, Octavia and Raven at their apartment. Bellamy looked over at Clarke, who was off to a corner watching Lexa talk to Harper. He went over to his friend and slung an arm over her shoulders. “You reek of jealousy.”

              Clarke scoffed. “I am not jealous.”

              “Why don’t you just ask her out? It’s obvious that you’re into her. Besides, Harper likes her so you better make a move sooner rather than later.”

              “I’m not making any moves.” Clarke moved Bellamy’s arm from over her shoulders. “We’re just friends.”

              Bellamy grinned. “Denial doesn’t look good on you,” he said before walking away.

              Clarke rolled her eyes and decided that she was done with this party. She headed to her room and kicked off her shoes before getting into bed. She looked up at the ceiling and tried to drown out the sound of laughter and chatter. A knock at the door broke Clarke out of her thoughts and before she could say anything, it was being pushed open.

              Lexa entered the room and leaned her back against the door. “Turning in for the night?”

              “I guess,” Clarke replied, surprised Lexa had noticed her exit from the festivities.

              Lexa removed her shoes and moved to lie down next to Clarke. “You okay?”

              “Yeah, just all partied out,” Clarke lied. “What about you?”   

              Lexa sighed. “I feel like I’m a teen again waiting to get reprimanded by my parents. To be fair, I should’ve told them that I was transferring.”

              “And they need to realize that you would’ve told them if they weren’t so controlling,” Clarke pointed out. “You had something great with Costia. Don’t let them take those memories away from you.”

              Lexa was silent for a beat before turning her head to look at Clarke. “Have you ever been in love?”

              Clarke thought about Finn and her other exes, instantly feeling bad for all the hearts she had broken. “No.”

              Lexa frowned. “You said you were in a relationship for two years.”

              Clarke bit at her lower lip, debating if she wanted to bring up the mess that was her relationship with Finn. Deciding it would be good to talk about her ex, Clarke turned on her side so that she was facing Lexa and used her hand to prop up her head. “I stayed with him… Finn, thinking I’d be in love with him one day. He was a great guy. There was no reason for me to not love him… but it never happened. Those feelings just weren’t there for me. I never got butterflies in my stomach around him; I never missed him when he was away; I never had that fairytale love people go on about. I knew I had to break-up with him but I kept putting it off because I knew he’d be a wreck. One night he proposed and that was it- I couldn’t keep stringing him along. I ended things. He got drunk that same night and ended up getting in a car accident. A really bad one. Five people died. Finn was on life support for a few days and he didn’t have any family so it was up to me to decide what to do. Keeping him on life support was only prolonging the inevitable so I made the choice to let him go.”

              Lexa was tempted to reach out and comfort Clarke, but she knew that probably wasn’t what she wanted right now. “And that’s why you don’t date?”

              “Yeah,” Clarke replied. “I just make a mess out of everyone I get close to. I don’t want to chance hurting anyone else.”

              “What if they didn’t mind taking that chance?” Lexa asked, turning so that she was mirroring Clarke’s position.  

              “I’d say that they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into,” Clarke replied.

              Lexa hesitantly placed her hand on Clarke’s waist as if the action would have a negative response. When Clarke continued to stare at her, Lexa scooted closer to the blonde. Neither said anything as Lexa leaned forward slowly, giving Clarke enough time to turn her down.

              Clarke closed the space, connecting her lips with Lexa’s and the two immediately got lost in the kiss. Before they knew it, they were both topless. Lexa began to kiss Clarke down her neck and along her chest while Clarke panted beneath her. Lexa trailed her hand down to the button of Clarke’s jeans but was stopped when Clarke gently pushed at her shoulders.

              “Wait,” Clarke breathed out. “We can’t.”

              Lexa immediately moved off of Clarke. “Sorry,” she said as she stood up from the bed. “I got carried away.”

              “So did I,” Clarke sighed. “We should go back out to the party.”

              Lexa picked up Clarke’s shirt and tossed it to her before picking up her own. “Clarke.” She pulled on her shirt and looked at her fellow surgeon. “I want to take you on a date.”

              Clarke was putting on her shirt when Lexa said that so when she pulled it the rest of the way over her head, Lexa was met with a deer-caught-in-headlights look. “We’ve talked about this.”

              “You like me,” Lexa stated. “And I get why you don’t want to date but I think you should take a chance with me. I’m willing to take one on you.”

              Clarke remained on the bed as if the mattress was some sort of safe haven. If she got up and was closer to Lexa, her brain might not function properly. “Lexa, we just talked about this. I don’t want a relationship with anyone. Maybe we need space. We’ve been spending a lot of time together and it’s just confusing the situation.”

              Lexa shook her head. “I’m not confused.” She gestured between them. “This could work, Clarke.”

              A loud bang at the door startled them both. “Griffin, get your ass out here!” Octavia yelled, clearly drunk.

              Clarke got up from the bed and ran a hand through her hair. “Sorry, I better-,” she gestured to the door.

              “Yeah, no problem,” Lexa said, irritated by the interruption. Once Clarke slipped out of the room, Lexa put her shoes back on and waited a minute before walking out. It took less than a minute of rejoining the party before Harper was at her side again and this didn’t go unnoticed by Clarke.

              Octavia looked where Clarke was glaring and patted the blonde on her back. “What’s wrong?”

              Clarke rubbed her hands over her face. “Lexa asked me out. I said no. Our friendship is probably over.”

              “Clarke, I love you, but figure your shit out. You can’t dislike everyone who shows interest in Lexa when you won’t even give her a shot. I know you have your reasons but maybe it’s time you stop pushing people away.”

              Clarke let Octavia’s words sink in before looking back at Lexa. “Maybe,” she said, quietly.

 

 

 

Days later…

              Clarke was walking down the hall when she heard Harper talking to another nurse. “You kissed her?” the nurse asked, stunned.

              “I did,” Harper smiled. “We have a date tonight.”

              Clarke felt an unfamiliar tug in her chest as she continued down the hall. She hadn’t spoken to Lexa since the party and she would be lying if she said she didn’t miss the cardiothoracic surgeon. Apparently Lexa didn’t miss her, though, since she had moved on to Harper.

              “Clarke.” Lexa stopped walking in order to speak to the surgeon.  “I was actually on my way to see you. Can we talk?”

              “I’m busy,” Clarke replied, curtly, as she continued down the hall.

              Lexa rolled her eyes and turned to follow the woman. “We can’t continue on like this. We need to talk.”

              “There’s nothing to talk about. I want to be friends but you want more and your feelings apparently trump mine so…”

              “I never said that,” Lexa sighed. “I never even insinuated that your feelings don’t matter. You’re acting like a child. I’ve given you the space you wanted and now I’m hoping we can talk things out. You’re one of my best friends, Clarke, and I don’t have a lot of those.”

              “I’m not ready to talk,” Clarke replied. “Enjoy your date with Harper,” she added before walking off.

              Lexa gently grabbed Clarke by the wrist and pulled her to the closest on-call room. “First off, I don’t have a date with Harper. She asked me out after the party and I turned her down so she moved on. Secondly, you have absolutely no right to be jealous even if I was seeing someone. You’re the one choosing to deny your feelings for me so deal with it.”

              “I told you from the start where I stood on relationships,” Clarke pointed out. “You can’t act like this now because you’re not getting your way. I’m trying to protect you.”

              “No,” Lexa shook her head. “You’re trying to protect yourself. Never being in love has broken your heart and now you don’t want to try anymore because you can’t take how it makes you feel when a relationship fails. You’re scared. So am I… but sometimes taking a chance is worth it.”   

              Clarke was surprised that Lexa had figured her out. She took a step back from the brunette and folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not arguing with you about this. You need to respect my decision.”

              “I can do that. You have a nice day, Doctor Griffin,” Lexa said before leaving the room.  

 

 

 

              Later that day, Clarke was writing her surgeries on the board when Lexa approached her. “I need OR three at Four-thirty.”

              Clarke continued writing without looking at Lexa. “I have a surgery in OR three at five.”

              “I am aware of that, but I need that OR. Your surgery can be pushed back. Mine can’t be.”

              “Book another OR,” Clarke said, simply.

              “They are all taken,” Lexa stated. “But that’s okay. I’ll let my patient know that his very important heart transplant will have to wait until after your exploratory laparotomy.”

               Clarke rolled her eyes and turned away from the surgical board. “Fine, take it. You’re such a pain in the ass.”

              “You’re not exactly a walk in the park either,” Lexa stated before turning her head slightly to the side. “Blake.”

              Octavia, who had been standing a few feet away not wanting to get involved in the drama, approached her attending. “Yes, Doctor Woods?”

              “Prep Mrs. Reid for her heart transplant in OR three,” Lexa said before looking back at Clarke. “Thank you for your time, Doctor Griffin,” she said before leaving.

              Octavia waved bye to Clarke before making her way down the hall where she spotted Raven signing forms. “I feel like I’m a child stuck in a custody battle,” Octavia whined.

              “They won’t make you choose,” Raven assured her. “Just give them time to work their shit out.”

              “I don’t know. They seem pretty upset with each other.”

              “Then they’ll either kill each other or have really angry sex.” Raven looked up from the forms to glance at Octavia. “My money’s on the latter.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

 

              Clarke walked into the ER and moved to stand beside Bellamy. “Why does rain make people forget how to drive? I’ll be so irritated if my third trauma in less than two hours is another car accident.”

              Bellamy smirked as he continued to look over a patient’s chart. “To be fair, it’s also thundering and windy.” He looked up from the chart to ask Clarke a question. “How are you and Lexa?”

              Clarke sighed. “She’s avoiding me.”

              Bellamy quirked a brow. “Really? Because I saw her talking to you this morning.”

              “About work stuff,” Clarke explained. “She doesn’t talk to me about… Lexa stuff. And if anybody should be giving the silent treatment, it’s me. She’s the one who ruined what we had going.”

              “And what did you have going?” Bellamy asked.

              “A great friendship.”

              “Filled with benefits.”

              “What?” Clarke frowned. “There were no benefits.”

              “Really? Because Octavia said that you two-,”

              “Okay, shut up,” Clarke cut him off. “That was one time. We just needed to get it out of our systems.”

              Bellamy grinned. “And did you do that? Because from what I’ve been witnessing, you’re ready to drop your pants whenever Lexa’s in a room.”

              Clarke reached out and punched Bellamy in the side. “That’s not true.”

              “Okay, let’s test that theory out,” Bellamy said as he watched Lexa walk into the ER. Bellamy’s phone beeped and he quickly looked at it. “We’ll finish this conversation later.”

              “No, we won’t,” Clarke called to him as he rushed out of the ER. She looked over at Lexa, who was now talking to Monty, and contemplated making her way over to the brunette to see if she could get some sort of conversation out of her but before she could make a move, Octavia was beside her.

              “Just talk to her.”

              “I was thinking about it,” Clarke replied. “I don’t even know what to say.”

              “Maybe start with ‘my body is ready; my mind just needs time to catch up’ and see where that leads you.”

              “Octavia,” Clarke began.

              “I’m being serious,” Octavia said. “I need you to sleep with her or at least be friends again. Grumpy Lexa is not fun to have as an attending.”

              Clarke spotted a man enter the ER carrying a little boy. He had a garden rake vertically penetrating the left side of his body from his chest down to his stomach. The handle had been sawed off to make it easier to transport the boy. Both were soaked from the rain. “What happened,” Clarke asked as she rushed towards them.

              “I thought he was inside,” the man said, frantically. “I looked out the window and saw him jumping on his trampoline. He bounced wrong, flew off and landed onto the rake.” Octavia rolled a gurney over and the man placed his son down onto it. “I would’ve called an ambulance but with the weather and traffic, I figured it’d be faster if I drove him. Is he going to be okay?”

              “What’s his name?” Clarke asked as she pulled gloves on.

              “Henry,” the man answered. “You can help him, right?”

              A nurse approached the man and placed a hand on his back. “Sir, I’m going to need some information and then we can get you out of these wet clothes. The doctors will help your son.”

              Lexa approached Clarke as she began doing everything she could to stabilize the boy. Once the trauma surgeon was done, she looked up at Lexa. “Okay, he’s all yours.”

              “Scrub in with us?  We might need the extra help,” Lexa said.

              Clarke nodded. “Let’s save a life.”

             

             

                 

              Lexa was lacing up her shoes in the locker room when Clarke entered with Octavia and Raven. She stood up from the bench and nodded a greeting at the three before slipping out of the room.

              “What the hell?” Clarke sighed. “Why does she keep avoiding me?”

              Raven opened the locker room door and pushed Clarke out of it. “Don’t come back until you’ve spoken to her.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes as the door shut in her face. She tried to open it but Raven was leaning against it. “What are you? Five?” When she didn’t get a response, she sighed and decided to do what her friend said. She rushed down the hall to catch up to Lexa. “Hey.” Lexa stopped walking and turned to face Clarke. “We worked well together today.”

              “We did. I’m glad we were able to save him.” They stood silently for a few seconds, neither knowing what to say next. “I should get going. You have a good night, Clarke.”

              “You’re being unfair,” Clarke rushed out as Lexa turned to walk away. “We agreed to be friends and now you’re giving me the silent treatment.”

              Lexa sighed and turned back around to face the blonde. “I’m not giving you the silent treatment, Clarke. You wanted space. I’m just giving you that.”

              “You can give me space and still talk to me,” Clarke stated.

              “I don’t want to say the wrong thing,” Lexa explained. “You’re likely to freak out at any given moment when feelings are too deeply involved.”  

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “You know what? I don’t know why I’ve missed your company. I should be enjoying the lack of sarcasm.” Clarke began to walk off but then turned back around. “And I don’t freak out. I just know what’s best for me. At least I’m not leaving unpacked boxes around my apartment in the off chance that I can’t handle life without my parents controlling every aspect of it.” Lexa opened her mouth to make a retort but Clarke kept going. “Figure out your own shit before you criticize me for mine.”

              Lexa looked at Clarke in disbelief. “I’ve never criticized you for how you feel. Don’t be overdramatic. And you don’t know what it’s like to grow up with overbearing parents who won’t be proud of you unless you follow in their exact footsteps. Look, I don’t know what you want from me, Clarke. Do you want space or not? Do you want to be friends? Do you want _me_? I can’t keep up with your indecisiveness. Maybe you just need to-,” Lexa was cut off when Clarke’s lips crashed into her own.

              Clarke reached behind Lexa in order to open the door to the on-call room and once inside Lexa pushed her against the door. They stared at each other for a beat before their lips met again for a heated kiss.

 

             

              Octavia and Raven had been staring down the hall, watching the two interact and were now smiling, pleased with the outcome of their conversation.  

              “So that’s happening,” Octavia said, amused. “Think they’ll have their shit together now?”

              “Probably not,” Raven answered. “But hot sex in an on-call room is a start.”

              “Shit,” Octavia said as she moved away from the door.

              “What?” Raven asked, frowning at the woman.

              “We carpooled in with Clarke today,” Octavia reminded her. “We can wait for Bellamy’s shift to end or call a cab.”

              “Or…” Raven grinned mischievously as she opened Clarke’s locker. “We take Clarke’s car,” she pulled the keys out of the locker, “and go home ourselves, forcing Clarke to accept a ride from Lexa.”

              Octavia pointed at Lexa. “You are brilliant.”

              Raven grinned. “I’m aware.”

             

 

 

              “So we can have sex but we can’t have a mature conversation?” Lexa asked as she pulled her jeans on.

              Clarke pulled on her shirt and looked at Lexa. “I wanted you to stop talking.”

              “Extreme way to make that happen.” Lexa plopped down on the bed and once Clarke was dressed, she joined the brunette. “I don’t want to fight with you, Clarke.”

              “I don’t want to fight either,” Clarke promised. “I’m sorry for what I said about your parents.”

              Lexa shook her head. “You weren’t wrong. Look, I didn’t mean to upset you. I should’ve respected what you said you wanted. I’m not good at this whole thing.”

              Clarke laughed lightly. “That makes both of us.” Clarke ran a hand through her hair. “I like you, Lexa… a lot. I never meant to mess with your feelings. And if I’m being honest, I wanted everything with you just without the title attached to it. That wasn’t fair of me.”

              “So what happens now?” Lexa asked, curiously. “Because I like what we’re doing here. Talking and being honest about our feelings. The sex part wasn’t so bad either. We can do that again, too.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes and nudged Lexa with her shoulder. “We’re having a serious moment.”

              Lexa smirked. “I’m very serious about wanting to have sex again.”

              “You’re impossible,” Clarke said, but a smile was playing at her lips. “We’re not having sex again- especially in here. It’s unsanitary. I feel dirty.”

              Lexa laughed. “So… friends, again?”

              Clarke bit at her bottom lip as she thought about her next words. “We’ve proven that we can’t just be friends, and I’m not ready for a full-blown relationship. Not yet. So how about we just take things slow and see what happens?”

              “Just to be clear since we haven’t been too good with communicating as of late- are you saying you want us to date?”

              “Yes, that’s what I’m saying… if that’s something you want.”

              Lexa smiled. “Of course it’s something I want. Is there a guideline I need to follow to ensure that I don’t mess up?”

              Clarke stood up from the bed and ran a hand through her hair. “You can stop being an ass for starters and I think a date would be nice.”

              “A date. Do I have to plan it because I might not do too well if I’m left to my own devices,” Lexa admitted.

              “You’re such a catch,” Clarke said, sarcastically. “It can be a joint effort. Don’t worry.” She moved to the door. “Wait for me?”

              “Yeah, no problem. I’ll be outside,” Lexa said. When Clarke left the room, Lexa’s smile widened and she let out a content breath. “Don’t fuck this up,” she whispered to herself.

 

 

              Clarke stopped outside of her apartment and looked at Lexa. “Thanks for the ride.”

              Lexa grinned. “You should be very thankful. I had to go so far out of my way,” she joked.

              Clarke shook her head. “You’re an idiot.”

              “I think the word you’re looking for is adorable. I’m very-,” Lexa’s eyes fluttered closed as Clarke’s lips pressed into her own.

              Lexa smiled against Clarke’s lip. “Is this how you’re going to shut me up from now on because I’ve got to say, I don’t mind it at all.”

              “Goodnight, Lexa,” Clarke said with a smile. When Lexa disappeared inside, the front door to the apartment opened and Raven pulled Clarke inside. “That looked promising.”

              “You’re both trouble,” Clarke said as she moved to sit in the living room.

              “I won’t deny that,” Raven said. “So are you two together, screwing on occasion or just friends who kiss at front doors? What’s going on?”

              “We’re taking things slow,” Clarke replied.

              “What’s your definition of slow?” Octavia asked, curiously as she moved to sit across from Clarke. “Because sex in an on-call room is not slow.”

              “Yeah, you lucky bitch. Even I haven’t had filthy on-call room sex. I’m jealous,” Raven said.

              “We’re just dating and seeing what happens. That might include sex or it might not. We’ll see what happens.”

              Raven laughed. “It’ll include sex. You can’t keep it in your pants when it comes to Lexa.”

              Clarke flung a throw pillow at Raven, but didn’t deny it because she wasn’t wrong. “I just hope I don’t screw things up.”

              “You’ve got us,” Octavia assured her. “We have no problem telling you when you’re being stupid.” Octavia had a strong feeling that this would be Clarke’s most successful relationship yet.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

Clarke was about to enter Henry Mattison’s hospital room when she saw Lexa in the room checking the boy’s vitals. Since Lexa’s back was to her, she leaned against the doorway and watched on.

              “Everything looks good, Henry,” Lexa said as she moved her stethoscope from her ears. “You’ll be as good as new soon and you’ll have an awesome scar. Just don’t go getting anymore this massive.”

              “I’ll be more careful,” the seven-year old promised.

              “Good.” Lexa reached into her lab coat pocket and pulled out a cup of Jell-O. She lowered her voice as she spoke to Henry. “I infiltrated the cafeteria and found the best of the best.” She handed the Jell-O to Henry along with a spoon. “Enjoy it. I’ll be back to see you later.”

              “Thanks, Doctor Woods!” Henry said, happily as he tore open the Jell-O cup. Lexa ruffled his hair and turned to leave, smiling when she saw Clarke.

              “I think you missed your calling,” Clarke said as they headed down the hallway together. “You should’ve been in peds.”

              “Being a pediatric surgeon would break my heart,” Lexa admitted. “I can’t stand to see kids sick or hurt.” Once they reached the elevator, Lexa hit the button for the elevator to open and turned to face Clarke. “Are you busy tonight? I was thinking we could have dinner together at my place.”

              Clarke grinned. “As a date?”

              “No, our first date isn’t going to be that lame,” Lexa assured her. “I just want to spend time with you outside of the hospital.”

              “I can do dinner.” The doors to the elevator slid open and the two stepped on. “Do you want me over to help cook or anything?”

              “You can come over and keep me company while _I_ cook. And it’s sweatpants and t-shirt or no service.”

              Clarke laughed. “So you want me to come over looking like a bum?”

              “I just don’t expect you to get yourself dolled-up after a long day of saving lives just so we can sit on my couch.” Lexa hit the button for the floor they would be going down to. “Besides, I’ve seen you zombie walk out of your apartment with impressive bed hair in order to go to your favorite drive-thru for breakfast and I still found you sexy.”

              Clarke blushed lightly. “You’re ridiculous.”

              “Also,” Lexa began as the elevator came to a stop. “Sweatpants are easier to take off.” Clarke punched Lexa in the arm just as the elevator doors slid open. Lexa laughed and moved to step off the elevator but froze when she saw a familiar face a few feet down the hall. “Are you kidding me?” She huffed as she stepped off the elevator.

              “What’s wrong?” Clarke looked down the hall and back at Lexa.

              “See that man talking to Doctor Jaha?” Lexa asked. “That’s my father.”

              “Oh.” Clarke made a ‘yikes’ face. “Are you going to talk to him?”

              Lexa sighed. “The faster I do, the faster he leaves. The only upside is that he’s less aggravating than my mother.”

              Thelonious Jaha turned his head and spotted Lexa. “Doctor Woods,” he smiled. “Your father was just telling me about a few of his best surgeries.”

              Lexa forced a smile. “I’m sure they were thrilling to hear about.” She looked at her father. “You and mom really need to call me before you show up.”

              “That just gives you enough time to plan a way to avoid us,” Lexa’s father replied before looking at Jaha. “It was nice talking to you Doctor Jaha.”

              “You as well, Doctor Woods.” Jaha walked off, leaving Lexa to talk to her father.

              “Let me speed this up,” Lexa said. “I’m happy with my choice to transfer to Ark Hospital and I am not ready to be chief of cardio.”

              Vincent Woods looked at Lexa in disbelief. “Not ready? You are more than ready, Alexandria. Your mother and I made sure of that.”

              “Yes, you most certainly did,” Lexa said, obviously irritated.

              Vincent sighed. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

              “It means you didn’t give me a chance to want to be anything else,” Lexa explained. She gestured down the hall and the man followed her to a more secluded area. “Listen, I love being a doctor. I’m amazing at what I do. I just don’t want it to be my life. I chose to take a step back so I could breathe. I want you and mom to be proud of me but I can only sacrifice my happiness for so long.”

              “Sacrifice your happiness?” Vincent repeated with a frown. “We’ve only wanted the best for you, Alexandria. We’ve given you all the resources you need to be successful and we helped craft you into an amazing doctor. You are part of a legacy. My parents were just as hard on me if not harder.”

              Lexa clenched her jaw. “Do you hear yourself? Crafted me? I’m your daughter- not some project. You and mom never listen.”

              “I’m listening,” Vincent assured her. “You’re complaining. I can’t believe Anya let you transfer. Grounder Medical is where you belong.”

              “You and mom left GM,” Lexa pointed out.

              “Because we wanted to start our own private practice,” Vincent said. “Just think about your choices, Alexandria. You’re letting opportunities pass you by.”

              Clarke had kept a respectful distance from Lexa and her father so they could talk privately but she could tell that Lexa was just becoming increasingly frustrated so she decided to put an end to the conversation. “Doctor Woods.” Clarke approached Lexa. “I need a consult.”

              Lexa was grateful for the interruption. “I’ll be right there, Doctor Griffin.” She looked back at her father. “A pleasure as always,” she said, sarcastically.

              “Think about what I said,” Vincent said. “And we’re having a gala at the end of the month. Not optional. You embarrassed your mother when you didn’t show up to the last one. I’ll text you the details. Please bring an acceptable date.”

              Lexa watched her father leave the hospital before she let out a breath. “Nothing I said even registered with him. Thanks for coming to the rescue.”

              “No problem,” Clarke said. “He didn’t seem any less aggravating than your mother, though.”

              Lexa began to walk down the hall with Clarke. “My mother would’ve caused a huge scene. She’s all for dramatics.”

              “Speaking of dramatics, my dad wants me to visit him and he wants me to bring you along. He claims you’re the second child he never knew he wanted. Octavia and Raven will be there, too. And none of my crazy family will be around. But don’t feel compelled to come because I’ll totally get it if spending your Saturday with my parents isn’t appealing to y-.”

              “Clarke,” Lexa smirked. “I’d love to join you and I don’t feel pressured to go or anything like that. I enjoy your family. They’re fun. Anyway, I do have to go but I’ll see you later. Sweatpants,” she reminded Clarke before leaving.

              Abby approached her daughter with a look of curiosity. “Sweatpants?”

              Clarke cleared her throat. “Lexa’s just being… Lexa. What’s up?”

              “Did you ask her if she’d come?”

              “Yes, I asked her. She’ll be there… as a friend. Tell dad not to do anything weird.” Clarke didn’t want her mother to know that she and Lexa were dating because she knew the woman would be even worse than she was now.

              Abby sighed. “Still just friends? Clarke she’s perfect daughter-in-law material. Your father and I will be heartbroken if you don’t end up together.”

              “Mom,” Clarke whined. “You sound crazy.”

              “Well can you blame me?” Abby huffed. “I’m not getting any younger, sweetheart. I’d like at least one grandchild. Have you seen Lexa with kids? You two would be great parents.”

              “Ohmygod, Mom,” Clarke groaned. “I’m walking away from this conversation.” Clarke made her way back to the ER, hoping her mother wouldn’t say anything that embarrassing in front of Lexa this weekend.

 

 

 

              Lexa looked up from the meal she was preparing and smiled when she saw Clarke still working on the sketch she insisted on making of her. She was sitting with her back to the armrest of the couch and her legs were propped up so the sketchbook could rest against it. The blonde had come over in sweatpants and a tank top with her hair damp from her shower. Lexa thought she looked stunning.

              Clarke looked up and caught Lexa staring at her. “You should be focusing before you cut your finger off.”

              Lexa grinned as she returned her attention to what she was doing. “You keep staring at me. It’s only fair I get to look at you.”

              Clarke taped her pencil to the sketchbook resting on her lap. “I have a reason.”

              “Can I see it?” Lexa asked as she turned to face the stove.

              Clarke looked down at her sketch of Lexa. “I don’t know if I like it. It’s hard to capture on paper how much of a sarcastic ass you are.”

              Lexa finished up in the kitchen and moved into the living room. “You’re not getting a kiss goodnight later,” she said as she sat down.

              Clarke held her sketchpad up to her chest as Lexa tried to glimpse at it. “And who said I wanted a kiss goodnight?”

              Lexa lifted Clarke’s feet so that they could rest on her lap. “I just know these things.” Lexa began to massage Clarke’s foot earning a grateful moan. “Are you really not going to let me see it?”

              Clarke pulled the sketchbook away from her chest to look at it one more time. If she wasn’t being so hard on herself, she would be able to admit that she had done a great job of capturing Lexa on paper. She turned the sketchbook around so Lexa could see it and watched the brunette’s face as she took it in.         

              Lexa took the sketchbook from Clarke so she could look at the drawing more closely. “This is amazing, Clarke.” Lexa pointed to the sketch. “I like how it changes from light to dark here. And my eyes are so expressive. I look… soft. But not a weak soft,” she quickly added. “I’m not saying you made me look weak.” Lexa looked up at Clarke. “I probably sound like an idiot right now.”

              Clarke moved her feet from Lexa’s lap and took the sketchbook before moving to straddle the brunette’s thighs. She tossed the sketchbook blindly onto the coffee table as she leaned in to kiss Lexa. Lexa placed her hands on Clarke’s waist, surprised by the sudden action but she came to her senses quickly as she returned the kiss.

              Once Clarke pulled away, Lexa placed several kisses on her neck. “Tell me what I did to deserve that so I can do it ten more times.”

              Clarke chuckled and kissed Lexa again before moving to sit down beside her. “You were being cute. I’m so used to people just saying they like my art. You tried to explain to me why and I appreciate that.”

              Lexa reached for the sketchbook and studied it for a few seconds. “I also like the way you drew my lips. They look very kissable.”

              Clarke laughed and took the sketchbook back, hitting Lexa lightly on the head with it before tossing it onto the coffee table once more. “You’re an idiot.” She leaned over and kissed Lexa again before moving back to her previous position.

              Lexa took Clarke’s feet onto her lap again and began to massage them. “Cooking you dinner, massaging your feet- this is all very domestic of me.”

              Clarke grinned. “I like it.”

              “Of course you do. You’re being pampered.”

              “I could give you a massage that you’d enjoy.” Clarke had a mischievous look in her eyes. Lexa’s hands paused their actions as she quirked a brow at Clarke. “Come here.”

              “We haven’t had a first date,” Lexa pointed out. “I’m a respectable woman, Doctor Griffin.”

              Clarke looked at Lexa in disbelief. “You’re serious?”

              “As a pulmonary embolism.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes but was highly amused. “Normal people say ‘as a heart attack’, you nerd. And you do realize that you just turned down sex, right?”

              “I want to do this properly,” Lexa stated. “Sex complicates things and I just want to enjoy… _this_.” She gestured to the position they were in now. “I like this.”

              Clarke felt her heart warm at Lexa’s words. “I like this, too.”

               


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

Lexa was sitting in her living room Saturday afternoon looking at the one unmarked box that was left for her to unpack. She took a sip of her coffee and after a few minutes, she finally stood up. She was about to make her way over to the box when there was a knock at her door.  She opened the door without looking through the peephole and smiled when she saw Clarke. “Hey, you.”

              “Hey, are you ready?”

              “Yeah, let me just grab my phone.” Lexa turned to head to her room and Clarke entered the apartment, surprised by how different it looked from three days ago. The kitchen was fully decorated as well as the living room. There was even a TV now.

              “You’ve been busy,” Clarke said as she looked around.

              Lexa stepped out of her room. “Yeah, I did it this morning. The TV is Anya’s doing. She dropped it off with a DVD player the other day. According to her, I need stop living like a Neanderthal.”

              “A TV has its uses,” Clarke assured her.

              Lexa smirked. “Like allowing me to cuddle with a hot trauma surgeon while a horrible movie plays in the background?”

              “Or even make-out,” Clarke added. “The possibilities are endless,” she winked. Clarke spotted a box in the corner of the living room and gestured to it. “You forgot a box. I can help you unpack it real quick.”

              Lexa waved it off. “I’ll worry about that one later. We should go before Octavia and Raven assume we’re having sex.”

              Clarke laughed. “That is something they would do.” The two exited the apartment just as Octavia and Raven were walking out. “We’re ready.”

              Once outside, Clarke got into the driver’s seat and Octavia quickly got into the passenger’s seat so Lexa wouldn’t be able to. Clarke eyed her friends, who looked at her innocently. Lexa got into the backseat with Raven and knew from the grin she received from the other brunette that it would be an interesting half hour drive to the Griffin residence.

 

 

 

              Abby and Jake laughed as Raven retold a story from Clarke’s first year as an intern. “That’s not what happened,” Clarke stated. “You totally put your own spin on that.”

              "Enough stories about me," Clarke said before taking a sip of her drink.

              "I just have one more," Raven promised.

              "That's what you said before your last exaggerated tale about me," Clarke reminded her.

              Jake shook his head in amusement at Raven's antics. "If I remember correctly, as an intern you told a patient to deal with you being his doctor or you'd change his charts so when he woke up from surgery he'd be missing one of his man parts."

              "Clarke told you that story? That guy was such a jerk. He wanted a male doctor. He wouldn't even let me put his IV in without being a misogynistic prick."

              "You've come a long way from threatening patients," Abby stated. "There were a handful of times where I thought you'd get fired just because you didn't have a filter."

              Clarke laughed. "She has greatly improved."

              “Hey, I just don’t put up with idiots,” Raven stated.

              “Speaking of putting up with idiots,” Abby began. “Clarke, when’s the last time you’ve been on a date?”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “That was not a leeway into talking about my personal life.”

              “Sure it was.” Abby looked at Lexa. “Are you seeing anyone, Lexa?”

              “No, ma’am,” Lexa replied. “I’m too busy.”

              Abby shook her head. “You sound like Clarke. You’re both too young to be throwing your love lives away. You should be dating and having fun.”

              Octavia grinned. “Yeah, maybe you two should think about getting back out in the dating world.”

              Clarke narrowed her eyes at her friend. “I’m not interested in dating anyone.”

              “You just need to find the right person,” Raven said.

              “I agree,” Jake smiled, ignoring his daughter’s glare. “And maybe that person is right under your nose.” He tilted his head in Lexa’s direction subtly.  

              Clarke moved to get up. “I’m going to get something to drink.”

              Jake held his hand out for her to stop. “I’ll go. Can you help me, Lexa?”

              Clarke knew what her father was up to. “I can help you.”

              “It’s okay. I need to stretch my legs anyway.” Lexa got up, winking at Clarke before heading inside with Jake.

              Once they were gone, Clarke looked at her friends and mother. “What are you three doing? You couldn’t be more obvious if you tried.”

              “We just like Lexa,” Raven said, innocently. “Right, Mrs. G?”

              Abby nodded. “She’s great, Clarke. You should really think about asking her out.”

              “And I’m sure she’d say yes,” Octavia added, mischievously.

              “Lexa is perfect for you, honey,” Abby insisted. “There’s no reason for you not to go for it. Besides, a woman has needs. When’s the last time you’ve been with anyone?”

              Octavia and Raven laughed at the shocked look on Clarke’s face. “Mom,” Clarke whined.

              “What? I’m not a prude,” Abby said. “You need to get out there. Your father was only supposed to be a one-night stand and look how things turned out.”

              “Ohmygod,” Clarke said, willing her father and Lexa to return so the topic could be changed to something less scarring.

             

             

 

 

              Lexa was in the kitchen helping Jake pour drinks for the others when she heard laughter. She turned her head to look at the window and smiled when she saw Clarke laughing because Raven was tickling her.

              "She has her mother's laugh," Jake stated as he set the bottle of champagne down on the counter.

              "It's a beautiful sound," Lexa said before picking up the bottle so she could pour it into the other glasses. She could feel Jake staring at her and she wondered if she and Clarke had been careful enough about not giving away that they were kind of involved.

              "Can I ask you a question, Lexa?" Jake said as he leaned against the counter.

              "Of course, sir," Lexa said.

              "Is there something going on between you and my daughter?" Jake asked.

              "I…um." Clarke had told her that both Abby and Jake wanted them together but she still couldn't help but be nervous.

              "Relax," Jake smiled. "I'm just curious. You don't have to answer."

              Lexa made sure to look directly at Jake as she said her next words. "I like Clarke. She... she's come as somewhat of a surprise. I wasn't even interested in meeting anyone. I honestly didn't think I could feel this way again, but Clarke… she's great.”

              Jake smiled at Lexa’s confession. “I know Abby and I come off as one of those annoying meddling parents but we just want her to find someone she can be happy with. She’s determined to not let anyone in. I think she might be warming up to you, though. And you know you never actually answered my question.”

              Lexa didn’t want to lie to Jake about her and Clarke’s relationship status but she also didn’t want to piss off Clarke by revealing something that she wasn’t ready for them to know. “As of right now, sir, we’re just friends.”

              Clarke entered the kitchen and looked from Lexa to her father. “Do you guys need help with the drinks?”

              Jake gestured to the drinks on the table. “No, I’ll go bring the ladies their drinks. You two can stay here and talk as long as you want. No rush.”

              Clarke shook her head at her dad’s obvious way of trying to push her and Lexa together. Once he was gone, she looked to the brunette. “What was that about?”

              “He asked if there was something going on between us,” Lexa answered as she picked up one of the glasses on the table. She sipped it and said nothing as Clarke simply stared at her, waiting to hear more. “I told him we were just friends.”

              Clarke let out a breath of relief. “Thank you. I’ll tell them about us once things become official. I just don’t want them hovering more than they already are.”

              Lexa grinned. “You sound pretty certain about us becoming serious.”

              Clarke shrugged as she reached for her drink. “We’ll see if you manage to play your cards right.”

              Lexa watched Clarke sip her drink, her eyes following the blonde’s tongue as she licked her lips. Lexa glanced out the window above the kitchen and saw Abby watching them. She looked back at Clarke and grinned. “We have an audience, which is a shame because I really want to kiss you.”

              “We’ll have plenty of time for that later,” Clarke assured her. “I was thinking we could do something tonight. There’s a fair in town.”

              “A fair?” Lexa repeated with a frown.

              Clarke folded her arms across her chest. “I haven’t heard you come up with anything. Besides, I love fairs.”

              “I’ve never been to one,” Lexa stated. “I remember wanting to go when I was younger but my parents said it was a waste of time and that I should be putting my energy into bettering myself as a student.”

              Clarke hated that Lexa grew up in such a strict household and planned on making sure the brunette got out more often so she could enjoy the world around her. “Well, if you plan on dating me, then we’ll be doing a lot of time wasting together. Think you can handle that?”

              Lexa smiled. “Yeah, I think I can. We better get back out there before your parents start plotting on how to get us together.”

             

 

 

Later that night…

              Clarke and Lexa had been at the fair for a little over half an hour now and Lexa was surprised at how much she was enjoying herself already. The back of her hand brushed against Clarke’s as they walked and for the third time that night, she contemplated lacing their fingers together.

              “We should go on the drop zone,” Clarke said, gesturing to the ride that had currently risen to the top and was now dropping down at a fast pace with a bunch of screaming people.

              Lexa pointed to the shooting gallery instead. “Let’s try this out. I can win you a stuffed animal and my feet get to stay on the ground.”

              Clarke smiled. “You’re afraid of heights?”

              “I wouldn’t say afraid,” Lexa said. “Just… hesitant about getting on something that might’ve been put together incorrectly.”

              “People have been riding it for three days now. It’s legit.” Clarke began to move towards the shooting gallery. “But a stuffed animal sounds nice. Let’s see if you have any skills outside of the hospital.”

              Lexa grinned. “We both know I have skills outside of the hospital,” she winked at the blonde and Clarke playfully nudged her with her elbow. “I want the blue unicorn.”

              “Yes, ma’am,” Lexa said as she moved up to the booth.             

              Clarke watched on as Lexa paid the man at the booth and listened to the instructions. Clarke felt a tug at her shirt and when she looked down she saw a little girl. “Hi there.”

              “Hi,” the girl greeted her. “Is that your friend? She pointed to Lexa.

              “It is,” Clarke confirmed.

              “Tell her not to be sad if she doesn’t win,” the girl said. “My brother tried to win me a stuffed animal five times. He said the game is ripped.”

              _Rigged_ ,” the teen beside her corrected. “And it is,” he huffed. 

              Cheering sounded around them and when Clarke looked back over at Lexa, the brunette was being handed a blue unicorn. She smiled as Lexa made her way over to her with a triumphant smile. “A unicorn for the pretty lady.” She handed Clarke the stuffed animal.

              “Thank you.” Clarke took the unicorn and knelt down to face the little girl. “Think you could keep this for me? I think she’d have a lot more fun with you.”

              The girl beamed and happily accepted the stuffed animal. “Thank you!”

              “You are very welcome.” Clarke stood up and looked at Lexa. “What else can you impress me with?”

              Lexa grinned. “Take me to the backseat of your car and I could show you a few things.”

              Clarke playfully pushed Lexa by the shoulder. “Are all your jokes dirty?”

              “The dirty ones are the best kind,” Lexa said as they began to walk again. “Want to go against our better judgement and indulge in some funnel cake?”

              Clarke chuckled. “Sure. And then I want to play a few more games. We can give whatever we win to peds.” Lexa’s hand brushed against Clarke’s again and this time, she linked their fingers together without thinking too much about it. Clarke looked down at their joined hands and smiled. “I was wondering how long it would take you to woman up,” she teased.  

              Lexa laughed. “I just wasn’t sure if it was a move I should make out in public like this. You know, since we’re just keeping things low-key.”

              Clarke gently squeezed her hand. “This is acceptable.”

              Lexa’s phone buzzed in her back pocket and she pulled it out with her free hand in order to read the text message she had received.

_Anya[7:34pm]: How’s your date going?_

Clarke released Lexa’s hand and laughed lightly when the brunette frowned at the action. “I’ll go get the funnel cake. You go ahead and respond to Anya.”

              “How’d you know who it was?”

              “She’s the only person who texts you,” Clarke pointed out before walking away.

_Lexa[7:36pm]: Great… I think. I’m enjoying myself. I’m hoping Clarke is as well. Statistically speaking, how safe are Ferris wheels?”_

_Anya[7:37pm]: Get on the damn ride, Lexa. It’s romantic or whatever._

_Anya[7:37pm]: But if you do die, what do you want done with your body? We’ve never talked about these things._

_Lexa[7:38pm]: I hate you. Goodbye._

_Lexa[7:38pm]: …cremate me. But don’t keep me in an urn around your house. That’s creepy._

_Anya[7:39pm]: Noted. Now go get laid. I’ll see you next weekend._

Lexa shook her head at the message and shoved the phone back into her pocket before going over to join Clarke at the food stand. She pulled cash and handed it to the woman ringing Clarke up. “Thanks,” she said to the woman while Clarke put her money back into her wallet.

              “I had that,” Clarke said as she moved with Lexa to a nearby bench.

              “I know,” Lexa said as she sat down. “I don’t mind paying, though.”            

              “Well, you don’t have to pay for everything,” Clarke said. “I’ve got the next thing.”    

              “Okay, that’s fair.” Lexa could see the Ferris wheel ride from where they were sitting. “So I was thinking we could get on that ride. It seems-,”

              “Less scary than the rest?” Clarke finished for her.              

              “More safe than the rest,” Lexa corrected. “I’m not afraid. I’m sensible.”

              Clarke grinned as she took a bite of the funnel cake. “You’re cute.” She broke a piece of the funnel cake and held it up to Lexa’s mouth.”

              Lexa smiled and opened her mouth to accept the dessert. Her lips closed over the tip of Clarke’s finger and she sucked the sugar off of it as she pulled away. Clarke looked at her with eyes that were a shade darker before she returned her attention to their snack, pushing her impure thoughts of what she wanted to do to Lexa out of her head. “You okay there, Clarke? You look a little flustered.”

              Clarke smiled. “You’re going to get yourself into trouble, Woods. I don’t know if you’ll be able to handle the consequences.”

              “I would very much like to see what those consequences are,” Lexa said, huskily.

              “Keep it up and you’ll find out,” Clarke flirted back.

              Once they finished the funnel cake, they made their way towards the Ferris wheel. “You don’t have to ride this if you don’t want to.” Clarke could tell that Lexa was a little nervous.

              “It’s fine,” Lexa said. “It’s not like a rollercoaster or anything. It just goes in a circle very slowly, right?”

              Clarke placed a kiss on Lexa’s cheek. “Let’s go play a few games. The Ferris wheel will be here if we want to get on it later. Besides, what were you going to do? Kiss me when we get to the top?”

              Lexa scoffed. “No, that’s trite. We’re not a cliché, Clarke. I’m offended that you think my romantic abilities are that lame.” She linked her hand with Clarke’s and moved out of the line. “I saw a skee ball game earlier. Think you’re up to losing to me?”

              “I’m a skee ball champion,” Clarke stated. “You won’t beat me.”

              Lexa grinned. “Care to put money on that?”

             

 

 

              Lexa stopped outside of Clarke’s front door both pleased with how their date went. “So… I had fun.”

              Clarke smiled. “I’m glad. I enjoyed myself, too. And don’t think I forgot you owe me thirty bucks.”

              Lexa laughed lightly as she reached for her wallet. “I can’t believe you’re actually going to take my money.”

              Clarke held out her hand. “You deserve it with all that trash talking you were doing.” She accepted the thirty dollars and shoved it into her pocket. “We should make more bets.”

              “I think I’ve learnt my lesson.” Lexa moved a step closer to Clarke. “Are you busy tomorrow?”

              “In the morning,” Clarke answered. “But I’m free after that.”

              “There’s an art gallery showcasing a new artist tomorrow night,” Lexa stated. “I thought you’d want to go and take a look.”

              “I didn’t know you had an interest in art.”

              “I don’t,” Lexa admitted. “At least not really. But I know you enjoy it so I thought it could be a decent second date. Dinner and an art gallery. I know it won’t be as fun as a fair. I meant it when I said I was bad at this stuff. You can say no. My feelings can handle the-,”

              “Lexa,” Clarke cut her off. “Shut up,” she said, amused. “I’d really like to go. It is right up my alley.”

              Lexa let out a relieved breath. “Great. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” Lexa moved to go to her apartment but Clarke caught her by the hand. Lexa quirked a questioning brow.

              Clarke looped her fingers through Lexa’s belt loops and pulled her in for a kiss. “Can I come over?” She asked against her lips.

              “I _really_ want to say yes,” Lexa replied. “But we’re supposed to be taking things slow.”

              Clarke groaned. “You’d leave me horny outside my apartment door?”

              Lexa leaned forward, capturing Clarke’s lips with her own. The two made-out intensely against Clarke’s apartment door. Lexa pushed a thigh between Clarke’s legs and began to grind against her as she moved her lips to Clarke’s neck.

              “Shit, Lexa,” Clarke gasped. “Let’s get inside.”

              Lexa remembered herself and reluctantly pulled away from Clarke. “Not tonight.” She placed a gentler kiss on Clarke’s lips. “Sorry, I got carried away. I didn’t mean to get you worked up.”

              “It’s okay,” Clarke replied, breathlessly. “My shower will just be a bit longer tonight,” she added with a grin before pulling her keys out.

              The meaning to Clarke’s words didn’t quite register to Lexa until the blonde had slipped into her apartment and closed the door. “Oh,” Lexa breathed out. “Damn.” Images of Clarke pleasuring herself ran through her head and she was having second thoughts about waiting. “Clarke?” She stayed outside of Clarke’s apartment door for a few seconds, contemplating knocking so she could get the blonde back to her apartment but ultimately decided to spend her night alone. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and sent Clarke a quick text.

_Lexa[9:32pm]: Next time I decide we should hold off on sex, remind me how much I’ll regret that decision seconds later._

              Lexa went into her bedroom and set her phone down before going to take a shower. Once she was out, she got into bed and picked up her phone from her nightstand to see if Clarke had responded. She smiled when she saw that she had.

_Clarke[9:34pm]: Well, I could still come over…_

_Lexa[10:03pm]: Really?_

_Clarke[10:04pm]: Haha, no. I took a –really- nice shower and pictured what I would want you to do if you were in there with me._

              Lexa smirked as she quickly replied.

_Lexa[10:05pm]: Imagination is nothing compared to the real thing. Come over and I’ll show you._

_Clarke[10:05pm]: You had your chance. Who knows when you’ll get another. Night!_

              Lexa groaned as she set her phone down on the nightstand. She would definitely be thinking about Clarke and that shower as she tried to fall asleep.


	15. Chapter 15

              **Chapter Fifteen**

Lexa was walking up the stairs to her apartment when Clarke exited hers with Raven and Octavia. “Hey,” Clarke greeted her with a smile.

              “Hi,” Lexa replied, tiredly. “What are you three up to?”

              “A girl’s morning out,” Octavia replied. She could tell that Lexa didn’t get much sleep. “Are you okay?”

              Lexa nodded. “Yeah, I got called in a few hours ago. Had a long surgery.” She gestured to her apartment. “I’m just going to take a shower and go back to bed.”

              Clarke looked to her friends. “I’ll meet you guys at the car.”

              Raven smirked. “Sure thing. Have fun.” She wiggled her eyebrows at her friend before making her way out of the apartment building with Octavia.

              Clarke brushed a strand of hair from Lexa’s face. “Do you need anything? I can get you some breakfast.”

              Lexa smiled at how caring Clarke was being. “I don’t want you to go out of your way.”

              “It won’t be out of my way,” Clarke assured her. She took Lexa’s key from her hand and moved to her apartment door. “You go take a nap and I’ll be back with breakfast in an hour or so.”

              Lexa watched as Clarke unlocked the apartment door before pulling the apartment key off its keychain. “You’re taking my key?”

              Clarke handed Lexa back her other keys. “Yeah, I’ll need to get into your apartment while you’re asleep.” She shoved the key into her pocket. “Do you want anything specific?”

              Lexa smirked. “Do you remember my ‘pretentious’ coffee order?”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “You’re going to make me recite that order to a poor soul?”

              “I’m not making you do anything. You so graciously offered,” Lexa reminded her with a hint of a smile.

              Clarke reached up to cup Lexa’s chin. “You’re lucky you look so cute and pathetic right now.” She moved away from Lexa to head downstairs, ignoring the brunette as she denied looking pathetic. When she reached her car, she rolled her eyes as Raven and Octavia smiled widely at her.

              “Needed to get a few kisses in?” Raven teased.

              “I was just checking to see if she wanted anything while we were out,” Clarke informed them as she moved to get into the car.

              Raven got into the passenger seat while Octavia got into the back. “So what’s your status? Are you two official?”

              “We’re taking things slow,” Clarke reminded them as she started her car. “We’re just having fun. Nothing serious yet.”

              Octavia sighed. “Is that what you’re telling yourself so you don’t fall for her? Clarke, you need to let yourself just feel whatever it is Lexa makes you feel. Don’t shield yourself from it.”

              Raven nodded. “Yeah, I agree with that… just not in the cheesy romantic novel way that she said it.”

              Octavia kicked the back of Raven’s chair and Raven turned in her seat to try to hit the other woman.

              “Will you two behave,” Clarke chided, good-naturedly but her words went unheard as the two continued to trade hits.

 

 

 

              About an hour and a half later, Clarke entered Clarke’s apartment carrying a bag with a breakfast burrito and a cup of the brunette’s favorite coffee. “Lexa?” She called as she set the items on the counter. When she didn’t get an answer, she made her way to Lexa’s room and saw that the cardiothoracic surgeon was fast asleep. Smiling at the sight, she went over to the nightstand and picked up Lexa’s keychain so she could put the brunette’s key back into place. She was about to leave the room when Lexa’s phone began to buzz on the nightstand. Wanting Lexa to get more sleep, she picked it up and saw that it was Anya. She swiped the screen to answer it as she walked out of the room. “Hello?”

              “Clarke?” Anya replied. “Did you spend the night at Lexa’s?”

              Clarke could hear the suggestiveness in the woman’s voice. “No, I went to get her breakfast for when she wakes up. She was called into work and had a long surgery. She’s tired. Did you want me to give her a message?”

              “I was just going to ask her how the date went,” Anya answered. “But since I have you on the phone, you can tell me. So how’d it go?”  

              Clarke smiled. “Don’t you think maybe Lexa will want to tell you?” She saw the same box from yesterday in the corner of the living room and went to go look at it.

              “She won’t care. Did she get on any rides? She hates those things.”

              Clarke turned the box around to see if Lexa had labeled it at all. “No, she offered to ride the Ferris wheel but I wasn’t going to make her do something she really didn’t want to do. We had a lot of fun, though. She said her parents never let her do anything like that when she was younger.”

              Anya scoffed. “They’re such assholes.”

              “Seriously,” Clarke agreed. “They talk to her like she’s still a child.” Clarke pushed the box back into its corner and moved to sit down in the living room.

              “I’m sure you’re thrilled that they’ll be your in-laws one day,” Anya joked.

               “I think maybe I need to get a few more dates in with Lexa before I start thinking about in-laws,” Clarke said, knowing Anya was only messing with her. “Honestly, I’m surprised she’s not a mess with parents like that.”

              “She’s come a long way,” Anya stated. “So don’t go breaking her heart, okay?”

              “Worried that I might screw things up?”

              “From what I’ve heard, I might have reason to worry.”

              “I don’t want to hurt Lexa. This is actually the first time I’ve ever wanted a relationship to really work out. I don’t want to mess up.”

              “Okay, but if you hurt her, you’ll find out just how good I am with a scalpel,” Anya warned.

              “Let’s hope I won’t have to find out,” Clarke replied.

              “Hey.” Clarke heard a scratchy voice from behind her. Lexa sat down on the couch and gestured to her phone. “Who’s that?”

              “Anya,” Clarke replied as she moved to closer to Lexa. “She’s threatening my life if I ever hurt you.”

              Lexa smiled. “Ah, the best friend talk. Anya, make it good,” Lexa said, loud enough for her best friend to hear.

              Clarke rolled her eyes as she handed Lexa the phone. “You’re supposed to tell her not to harm me, jerk.” She got up from the couch and went to grab Lexa’s food and coffee.

              “I’ll leave you to make eyes at your girl,” Anya said. “Call me later.”

              “I will,” Lexa promised before ending the call. She smiled as Clarke handed her a breakfast burrito. “Thank you. I really appreciate it.”

              “It wasn’t a problem. Hope it’s not cold.”

              Lexa bit into the burrito and let out an appreciative hum. “It’s perfect.” She accepted the cup of coffee and sipped it. “And you got my order right. It took Anya months to learn it.”

              “Bonus points for me,” Clarke said. She gestured to the box in the corner. “Is there a reason you haven’t unpacked that box?”

              “It’s just random stuff. I don’t have a place for them right now,” Lexa answered. She finished off her burrito and sipped her coffee again before setting the cup on the table. She leaned over and kissed Clarke on the cheek. “I have to run to the store for some basic essentials of living. Want to join? I know it’s not exciting so feel free to turn me down.”

              Before Clarke could reply, Lexa’s phone began to ring. She looked at it and saw that it was the hospital. “Woods,” she answered. “…how long? …I’ll be right there.” She ended the call and looked at Clarke. “Same patient. Sorry to have to run out on you.”

              “This is me you’re talking to,” Clarke pointed out as she stood up. “I get it. Go save a life.”

              Lexa grabbed her keys from her nightstand before exiting her apartment with Clarke. She knocked on Clarke’s apartment door and when Octavia opened it, she quickly rushed out her next words. “I need you at the hospital. I’m not dealing with idiot residents on my off day. They can’t even keep my patient stable.” Octavia smiled, happily and rushed to grab her things before quickly leaving the building with Lexa.

              Clarke smiled to herself as she went into her apartment and sat down next to Raven in the living room. “Can I tell you something without you teasing me?”

              Raven tilted her head to the side as she thought about it. “There might be some teasing.”

              “Being in a relationship is becoming more appealing to me the more time I spend with Lexa.” Clarke ran a hand through her hair. “I like being around her. Usually I’m dying for space.”

              Raven laughed. “You sound like someone who has romantic feelings for someone else. And you thought that wasn’t possible.”

              “Yeah well, Lexa has definitely taken me by surprise.” Clarke rubbed her hands over her face before letting out a breath. “I really like her, Raven.”

              Raven placed a hand on Clarke’s knee. “Don’t let it scare you.”

              “I won’t,” Clarke said but Raven knew there was a chance that her best friend might run from her feelings if they became too intense.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

              Clarke looked herself over in the bathroom mirror one more time, admiring the way she looked in her red dress. It hugged her just right and she was sure Lexa would love it on her. She moved her hair behind her shoulders with a flick of her wrist and contemplated whether she should wear it up but decided to leave it as it was. She reentered her room and grabbed her black clutch purse, which matched her high heel shoes before going out into the living room where her roommates were watching a movie.

              Octavia paused the movie when she saw Clarke. "You look amazing!"

              "You're definitely going to be turning some heads tonight, Griffin," Raven added.

              "But I'm only interested in having one person’s attention tonight," Clarke replied with a smirk.

              "She'll definitely be looking," Raven assured her.

              Clarke smiled, pleased that her friends approved of her outfit for the night. "Thanks, guys. Don't wait up."

              Raven laughed. "Plan on getting laid, Griffin?"

              Clarke simply smirked before waving bye to her friends. Once she was out in the hall, she took a deep breath before knocking on Lexa's apartment door. She heard some shuffling and moments later the door opened, revealing Lexa in a form fitting black dress.

              "You look gorgeous, Clarke." Lexa didn't bother trying to hide that she was checking the other woman out.

              Clarke smiled. "Thank you. You look pretty stunning yourself."

              Lexa placed a kiss on Clarke's lips. "Thanks." Clarke caught Lexa before she fully pulled away and kissed her again.

              "Am I about to get a show?"

              Clarke was startled by the third voice in the apartment and pulled away from Lexa to look around. She spotted Lexa's laptop sitting in the living room facing them and saw Anya on the screen. "Please don't stop on my account."

              Lexa placed an apologetic kiss on Clarke's cheek. "Sorry, I forgot I was talking to her."

              "Ouch," Anya feigned offense. "You forget about me that easily?

              Lexa grinned. "You do see her, right?"

              Anya rolled her eyes. "At least try to make it to dinner before you two rip each other's clothes off. Have fun." Anya ended the Skype call and Lexa shook her head in amusement.

              "Ready to be wined and dined, Clarke?"

              Clarke smirked. "Not quite yet." She moved closer to Lexa and captured her lips for a kiss. She nipped at Lexa's bottom lip and pushed her hips against the brunette's as she continued to kiss her teasingly. She ran her hands up Lexa's inner thigh as her tongue entered the woman's mouth. Lexa let out a satisfied moan urging Clarke on but instead, she felt a light pinch on her thigh and Clarke bit her lower lip again before pulling away. "Now I'm ready," she breathed out. "Lead the way."

              Lexa stood shocked for a moment before getting herself under control. "That was just downright mean," she breathed out. She tried to kiss Clarke again but the blonde turned her head so she'd get her cheek instead.

              "You made reservations," Clarke reminded her. "We should go."

              Lexa moved her lips to Clarke's ear. "I want you." She caught Clarke's earlobe between her teeth and nipped at it gently. "I'll be quick," she promised before trailing kisses down Clarke's neck.

              Clarke let out a breath as Lexa sucked lightly on her pulse point. She was just about to give in when the brunette pulled away. "You know, you're right. We should get going." She winked and exited the apartment, leaving a shocked Clarke behind.

               

 

 

 

              Clarke was looking over her menu trying to figure out what half of the dishes were while Lexa spoke to the waiter about their champagne selection.

              "Are you ready to order, Clarke?" Lexa asked after she was done talking to the waiter.

              Clarke looked at Lexa apologetically. "I'm not. Sorry."

              Lexa smiled. "It's okay." She looked at the waiter. "Just a few more minutes, please."

              "Of course." The waiter left to give them time to think.

              "I've never eaten anywhere this fancy before," Clarke admitted. "I don't want to order the wrong thing and end up with something that'll make me gag."

              Lexa laughed lightly. "I'll make sure that doesn't happen. Are you in the mood for anything specific?"

              "Not really," Clarke said as she scanned the menu.

              "Can I order for you?" Lexa asked. "If you hate it when it gets here, you can order something else. I just think I know what you might like."

              Clarke grinned. "Well you already proved that during our sex-athon."

              Lexa laughs. "You're worse than me."

              "You've rubbed off on me." Clarke pointed a finger at Lexa. "Don't follow that with a dirty comment." She closed her menu and set it aside. "You can order for me."

              Once the waiter returned, Lexa ordered their meals and the two got lost in easy conversation. Lexa enjoyed making Clarke smile and found it adorable how the blonde would try to stop herself from laughing by covering her mouth as to not draw attention to their table.

              "You made that story up," Clarke laughed.

              "I didn't." Lexa held her right hand up. "It happened." Lexa reached her hand across the small space between them to where Clarke's arm rested on the table. She fiddled with the bracelet around Clarke's wrist as she said her next words. "You really do look gorgeous tonight."

              Clarke blushed lightly at the attention. "Thank you. It's nice to have a reason to dress up."

              "Alexandria."

              Lexa pulled her hand away from Clarke at the sound of her mother's voice and Clarke watched as Lexa's demeanor became tense. Lexa turned her head and saw her mother and father staring down at her.

              "This is a nice coincidence," Vincent said. "We've been meaning to call you about the gala."

              "You know, I don't think I'll be able to make that," Lexa replied.

              "Don't be silly," Ava Woods waved her off. "You've already missed one. People like to talk. They'll think you're estranged if you don't show up for a second time in a row."

              Vincent looked to the hostess, who was waiting patiently. "We'll just sit here, please."

              "I'll bring chairs over," the woman said before walking off.

              Lexa took a deep breath before speaking. "You can't sit here. I'm having dinner with someone."

              Ava looked over at Clarke and smiled. "Is this your girlfriend, Alexandria? How do you two know each other? You weren't a patient were you?"

              Lexa rolled her eyes. "Mom, you met her at Ark Hospital the other day." She gestured to Clarke. "This is Doctor Clarke Griffin."

              "What specialty?" Vincent asked, curiously.

              "I'm a trauma surgeon, sir," Clarke answered, politely.

              "I like trauma surgeons," Vincent replied. "They don't crack under pressure. You've got to be tough and in control to handle being in trauma. Are you a resident?"

              "No, sir. I'm an attending."

              The chairs were brought over and Lexa's parents sat down and forgot about the conversation for a moment as they looked over the menu to order.

              Lexa looked at Clarke and mouthed "I'm so sorry" before returning her attention to her parents. Clarke was surprised when she heard Lexa begin to speak in a different language. " _You two are being rude. You can't just invite yourselves to the table_."

              " _It's not like we get to see you every day_ ," Ava replied. " _We should be able to share a meal with you and your lovely friend. She is stunning, Alexandria. You should bring her to the gala. She'd be nice to have on your arm_."

              " _She's not a trophy for me to show off_ ," Lexa said, irritated. " _Please leave_."

              Ava ignored Lexa and looked back at Clarke. "What medical school did you attend?"

              "John Hopkins, ma'am," Clarke replied.

              "As did Lexa," Ava replied. "That's a great school."

              Lexa closed her eyes and took a deep breath and Clarke could tell the brunette was seconds away from exploding.

              "Lexa has told me about you two," Clarke said, hoping to diffuse the tension. "You opened your own practice. How is that going?"

              "Very well," Vincent smiled. "Thank you for asking. Alexandria never bothers to. Are your parents doctors?"

              "My mother is," Clarke confirmed. "My father is an engineer."

              "Very nice," Ava replied. "Is your mother a surgeon at Ark Hospital as well?"

              "She is."

              "Speaking of Ark Hospital," Vincent began. "Alexandria, have you decided when you are returning to Grounder Medical? Indra will have that chief of cardio position filled soon."

              "She can fill it," Lexa replied.

              Ava huffed at her daughter's response and before she could say anything, Clarke cut in.

              "Lexa's doing great at Ark Hospital. It's a bigger hospital and we have more doctors, which gives her time to herself. She doesn't have to stretch herself too thin. And as you probably know, it's a teaching hospital. The interns and residents all look up to her. She's making great doctors out of them. You should be proud of her." Clarke pushed her chair away from the table. "If you'll excuse me, I just need to run to the ladies room."

              Lexa smiled as Clarke got up and once she was gone, she looked at her parents. "You're both ruining my night."

              Ava sighed. "A ruined night is nothing compared to a ruined career. Do you know some people think you were forced to quit?"

              "I'm not concerned with what they think."

              “Well you should be. Being with that heart patient really messed things up for you, Alexandria."

              Lexa's phone buzzed on the table, where she had left it in case she was called into work.

_Clarke[6:47pm]: I tipped the waiter and convinced him to bring our food to the car when it's ready._

_Clarke[6:47pm]: I'm outside waiting for you._

              Lexa looked up at her parents. "I need to get to the hospital," she said as she began to stand up.

              "What about your date?" Vincent asked.

              "I'll let Clarke know we have to reschedule. Have a nice night." When Lexa reached outside, she smiled widely at Clarke. "And you've saved me yet again. I could've used you a few years ago."

              Clarke laughed. "Well I'm here now. I swear your parents have a knack for dulling an atmosphere."

              Lexa took Clarke's hand into her own and brought it up to her lips, pressing a kiss onto her knuckles. "I truly am sorry. This is definitely not how I thought the night would go.”

              Clarke placed a kiss on Lexa’s cheek. “It’s not your fault. And besides, the night’s not over.”

              Lexa’s surprise was obvious. “You mean you still want to continue after that?”

              Clarke smirked. “Surprisingly enough, I enjoy your company. Our night’s not ruined just yet. When our food gets here, I have just the place for us.”

             

 

 

 

              Lexa was sitting in her car, which was parked in the woods near a dead-end. She and Clarke were eating their dinner and she couldn't help but find it amusing. "I can't believe we're eating in the back of my car. This must be a 'worst date ever' moment for you."

              Clarke chuckled as she bit into her food. "This is nowhere near being the worst date ever."

              Lexa looked at Clarke with narrowed eyes. "Are you lying to make me feel better?"

              "Not at all," Clarke promised. "This is really nice."

              "Do you bring all your girlfr-," Lexa stopped suddenly and corrected herself. "Dates. Do you bring all your dates here?"

              Clarke caught Lexa's mistake but didn't dwell on it. "No, actually. I found this place on accident a few years ago and remembered it." Clarke shifted in her seat so that she was facing Lexa. "So, I learned something new today."

              "Yeah? Is it that I look amazing in this dress? Because that shouldn't be surprising."

              Clarke rolled her eyes with a smile playing at her lips. "No, idiot. It's that you speak another language. Trigedasleng is rare. The only person I know that speaks it is Octavia. She took a class in college."

              Lexa looked impressed. "I guess I'll have to start talking to her in Trigedasleng so she doesn't get rusty."

              "She'd love that." Clarke smirked as she said her next words. "I'd love it even more. You speaking another language is definitely sexy."

              Lexa grinned. "I will store that information for when I want to get into your pants."

              Clarke laughed and went back to eating before a thought hit her. "Didn't you order a bottle of champagne?"

              "Yeah, I told him my parents were paying for it." Lexa reached down at her feet and held up the bottle.

              "We should go back to your place and drink it." Clarke began to put her food away.

              Lexa checked the time on her phone. "We should actually head to the gallery."

              Clarke took Lexa's to-go box and placed it in the brown paper bag before setting the bag in the passenger seat. "Or...," she moved so that she was straddling Lexa. “We could preoccupy ourselves with something else.” She kissed Lexa and it wasn’t long before the brunette’s hands were on Clarke’s thighs, moving up her dress, which was already hiked up because of her position.

              Lexa dragged her nails gently down Clarke’s thighs before moving her hands back up as they continued to kiss passionately. She broke the kiss after a while and let out a breath. “Clarke,” she said, softly as if the name of a goddess was spilling from her lips.

              Clarke kissed Lexa again before pulling away. “What do you want to do?”

              Lexa leaned forward to press kisses along Clarke’s neck. “I think we’ll have to reschedule the gallery. I want to take you to bed and show you how much I want you.”

              Clarke smirked and reluctantly got off Lexa’s lap. “Then let’s get going. I don’t want to have to wait much longer.”

 

 

 

              Lexa and Clarke stumbled into the apartment with their lips attached. Lexa had the bottle of champagne in one hand and her other hand was resting on Clarke’s lower back. Clarke backed Lexa against the door and dropped to her knees before the brunette. She glided her hands up Lexa’s thighs until she reached her underwear and then slowly pulled them down. Lexa stepped out of her underwear and let out a shaky breath as Clarke looked up at her with hooded eyes. The blonde took the champagne from Lexa’s hand and set it down before lifting Lexa’s leg over her shoulder.

              Lexa grabbed onto the doorknob to keep herself up as Clarke’s mouth latched onto her. She threaded her fingers through Clarke’s hair and dropped her head back against the door as Clarke’s warm tongue slowly circled her. “Fuck,” she moaned out, tightening her grip on Clarke’s hair.

              Clarke slid her left hand up Lexa’s dress and gripped her ass as she continued to pleasure the brunette. When she could feel Lexa about ready to reach her peak, she pulled away and stood up.

              Lexa looked at her with furrowed brows. “What’s wrong?”

              Clarke smirked as she kicked off her heels. “My knees were starting to hurt.” She locked the front door and bent down to grab the champagne. “Want a glass?” She asked as she made her way into the kitchen.

              Lexa’s clit was throbbing- she definitely wasn’t thinking about champagne. She moved towards Clarke as the blonde set the bottle down on the counter. She wrapped her arms around Clarke from behind and nipped at her neck. “You’re such a tease.” She took Clarke’s hands and placed them on the counter before trailing one hand between the blonde’s legs. She didn’t bother pulling Clarke’s underwear off. She pushed the material aside and slid her fingers through her slit.

              Clarke’s jaw went slack as pleasure coursed through her. She reached behind her with one hand to cup the back of Lexa’s neck as the brunette continued to kiss and suck on her neck. “Lexa,” she gasped out.

              Lexa entered Clarke with two fingers and slowly pulled out causing the woman to whimper. “Do you still want that glass of champagne?” Lexa moved away from Clarke.

              Clarke turned around unsteadily. “Okay, you win. Bedroom now.” Lexa smirked and pulled Clarke to her for a passionate kiss as she guided her to the bedroom.

             

 

 

              The next morning, Clarke woke with a smile as she felt the gentle caress of Lexa’s lips against her shoulder. “Morning,” she let out huskily.

              “Morning,” Lexa replied. “Did you sleep okay?”  

              “I did.” Clarke turned and buried her face into the crook of Lexa’s neck. “I’m still tired, though.”

              Lexa smiled at the action and kissed Clarke on top of her head. “I’m going to make breakfast. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

              “I can help,” Clarke said.

              “Sleep. I’ll wake you when it’s ready.” Lexa slipped out of bed and pulled sweatpants and a t-shirt on before making her way to the kitchen.

              Clarke stretched in bed and began to run through a mental list of what she needed to do today. As she did that, she realized that she was adding Lexa to almost all her plans. She wanted more with the brunette and she found that terrifying. Clarke was starting to become overwhelmed by her feelings and decided to think about something else but she couldn’t shut her mind off. Letting out a breath, Clarke told herself that it was okay that her feelings for Lexa were growing. Deciding she wanted to help the brunette with breakfast, Clarke got out of bed and moved to the dresser to find something to wear. She opened a drawer and found a picture resting on top of the clothes. She picked it up and saw that it was a photo of Lexa with another woman. They looked to be pretty close. She turned the photo around and saw something written on the back.

_You’ll always be my greatest love. – Costia._

Clarke pulled shorts and a t-shirt from the drawer before setting the photo back where she found it. Once dressed, she sat down on the edge of the bed and thought about the photo. Lexa had been in love once. Clarke knew that, but she had never put much thought into it until now. She couldn’t help but wonder if Lexa had truly moved on from the other woman and the answer to that question made her uneasy. Clarke’s mood shifted and she gathered her articles of clothing from last night before exiting the room. “Hey,” she greeted Lexa as she arrived in the kitchen. “I hate to do this but I have to go. Raven needs me for something.”

              Lexa turned away from the stove to look at Clarke. “No worries. I understand. Will you be back over?”

              “Not sure,” Clarke answered. “Depends on how long she needs me for. I’ll text you later. Maybe we can do something.”

              “Sounds good.” Lexa moved away from the stove to kiss Clarke. “Last night was great. I’m sorry again about my parents.”

              “I had fun. Your parents didn’t ruin our night,” Clarke assured her. She kissed the brunette on the cheek before going to her own apartment to sort through her thoughts and feelings.

 


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

              The following day, Clarke was sitting in a quiet hallway on a gurney next to Raven and Octavia. She hadn’t spoken much to Lexa since the previous morning and she knew she would have to soon. She was just avoiding any conversation with the brunette that would make her acknowledge her feelings.

              “You can’t just avoid her,” Raven said.

              “Yeah, it’s not fair to Lexa,” Octavia added. “You have to tell her what’s going on in your head.”

              Clarke sighed. “I hate dealing with feelings. What am I supposed to say? Hey, I saw a photo of you and your ex and I’m worried that I’m just a rebound?”

              Raven nodded. “Yes, tell her that. You have to be verbal, Clarke. You can’t just run when your feelings freak you out. You’ve got to communicate.”

              Clarke ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t know. Maybe I got too ahead of myself with this one. I need to take a step back and-,”

              “Clarke,” Octavia cut her off. “Don’t be an idiot. Lexa is perfect for you. If you keep doing this back and forth thing, then she might not be around when you figure out that you want to be with her.”

              Clarke bit at her lower lip as she thought about what her friends were saying. She didn’t want Lexa to give up on her. “I’m being stupid.”

              Raven smiled. “That’s the general consensus.” She nudged Clarke gently with her elbow. “You’re thinking too much. Lexa likes you and you like her. It’s that simple. Just let yourself have this, Clarke. You deserve to be happy.”

              Bellamy was walking down the hall when he spotted his sister and friends. “Glad to see everyone working so hard.”

              “You have no idea,” Octavia replied. “Between being a doctor and trying to keep Clarke’s love life intact, I’m worn out.”

              A look of realization crossed Bellamy’s face. “No wonder Woods is being so grumpy. What’d you do?” He asked Clarke.

              Octavia groaned. “I haven’t seen her yet. On a scale of one to ten how approachable is she?”

              “She’s ‘hasn’t-had-morning-coffee’ level of unapproachable,” Bellamy replied. “Enjoy being on her service today.”

              Octavia pouted. “She always gives me grunt work when she’s in a bad mood.” She perked up a second later. “But I’m her favorite so maybe I’m safe.”

              “Or maybe Harper’s her favorite because that’s the only person she hasn’t glared at yet,” Bellamy stated. “Sorry, Clarke. I warned her off but you’re kind of dragging your feet here. I can only do so much.”

              “No, you’re right.” Clarke got off of the gurney. “I’m going to talk to her. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

 

 

              Clarke made her way over to the cardio wing and spotted Lexa talking to Harper. She rolled her eyes as the nurse reached over to pick lint off of Lexa's lab coat. Clarke doubted anything was on it to begin with. She took a breath to calm her unwarranted jealousy before making her way over to Lexa.               "Doctor Woods," she greeted.

              Lexa glanced away from the nurse to look at Clarke before she returned her attention to Harper. "Sorry, if you'll excuse me."

              "Yeah, no problem," Harper smiled. She nodded a greeting at Clarke before walking away.

              Clarke watched Harper leave before making a comment. "You two looked cozy."

              Lexa shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. "You can't do that. You can't ignore me and then get jealous when someone else acknowledges that I exist."

              Clarke sighed. "That's not fair. I acknowledge that you exist."

              "Really? Because my ignored text messages and the way you've been avoiding me all morning says otherwise."

              “I freaked. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have given you the cold shoulder.”

              “No you shouldn’t have,” Lexa agreed. “I’ve got a post-op to check on.” She turned to leave but Clarke reached out to stop her.

              “Can we talk, please?”

              Lexa sighed. “Funny, I wanted to talk yesterday and you ignored my text messages and spent this morning hiding from me.” She gestured behind her. “I have to go. My patient will at least be happy to see me.”

              Clarke knew that she had really messed up this time. “Lexa, I’m sorry.”

              “You were sorry last time, too,” Lexa pointed out. “You can’t freak out about something, avoid me and then expect everything to be okay once you’re ready to talk about things. I can be patient, Clarke. I can give you space if you want it-- I’ll wait. I just need to know where I stand with you. You need to tell me what you want. If I did something wrong-

              “You haven’t,” Clarke assured her. “You’ve been great.”

              Lexa visibly deflated, her anger leaving her. “Then why did you run out on me after our night together?”

              Clarke gestured for the brunette to follow her and they made their way to the closest on-call room. Once inside, Clarke leaned against the door and looked at Lexa. “You make me nervous,” she began. “Being with you…,” she sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she tried to gather her thoughts.

              “Hey.” Lexa took a step forward. “It’s just me here. No pressure.”

              Clarke pushed down her nerves and continued. “I’ve never liked someone this much,” she admitted. “And it’s scary. I run because I need time to process things.”

              Lexa gave her a small smile. “Maybe instead of running, you can talk to me. Things might work out better that way.”

              Clarke bit at her lower lip before responding. “I saw a picture of your ex when I went to get clothes out of your drawer. I don’t want to put myself out there with you if I’m just a rebound.”

              Lexa placed a hand on the blonde’s cheek. “You, Clarke Griffin, are definitely not a rebound. Can you come over tonight so we can talk more about this?”

              Clarke thought about it for a moment before nodding against Lexa’s hand. “I’d like that. I’m sorry again for how I’ve acted. I’m not good when it comes to dealing with my feelings.”

              Lexa smirked. “I’ve noticed. It’s okay, though. I’ve got the patience of a saint. You got lucky with me.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “You do not have the patience of a saint.”

              “When it comes to gorgeous trauma surgeons with blue eyes, I do.” Lexa leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Clarke’s lips, resting there for a long second. The door to the on-call room opened suddenly causing Lexa to take a step away from Clarke and look to see who had caught them.

              Abby smiled at the sight before her. "Are you two together?"

              Clarke rolled her eyes. "Mom," she whined.

              "I have that post-op," Lexa said, blushing lightly. "We'll talk later." She looked to Abby. "Doctor Griffin," she said before exiting the room.

              Abby beamed at her daughter. "Are you two dating?"

              "We are," Clarke replied, knowing there was no point in denying anything. "We're just taking things slow and seeing what happens. Nothing's official." Clarke rolled her eyes again as her mother kept smiling. "Mom, seriously. Contain yourself. I don't even know if we'll end up working out."

              "And why wouldn't you work out? Clarke, Lexa's,-"

              "Perfect for me," Clarke finished for her. "I know and I agree."

              "Then what's the problem?" Abby asked.

              "She has this ex," Clarke began. "I don't know if you've heard the story and I don't want to put Lexa's business out there, but Lexa really cared about this woman."

              Abby closed the door to the on-call room and sat down on the edge of the twin bed in the room. She patted the empty space beside her and Clarke sat down as well. "I have heard about that, but Clarke, Lexa's moving on."

              "I know, but what if Lexa can’t ever feel that way again? What if that was just a one-time feeling and she realizes that?"

              Abby instantly realized what Clarke's worries were. "Liking someone... falling in love- it can be overwhelming. I know it's not easy to let yourself be vulnerable, sweetie, but if you don't put yourself out there, then you might miss out on amazing experiences.”

              Clarke rested her head on Abby’s shoulder as she let out a breath. “I really like her, Mom.”

              Abby placed a kiss on the top of her daughter’s head. “So do me and your dad; so don’t let her get away.” Clarke chuckled, hoping her talk with Lexa tonight went well.

 

 

 

              Clarke knocked tentatively on Lexa's apartment door and waited anxiously for the brunette to answer. She had been home for an hour but Lexa had an emergency with a patient so she had to stay behind. When she got the text saying that Lexa was home and read to talk, she had left her apartment after receiving a pep talk from Raven.

              Lexa opened the door and smiled at Clarke. "Hey, sorry it took so long. Patient kept crashing."

              Clarke shook her head at Lexa's nonchalant tone. "I'm sure it was a big inconvenience for you."

Lexa smirked. "It was. I had this beautiful neighbor I wanted to get home to see."

              Clarke smiled as she entered the apartment. "I'm sure your neighbor didn't mind waiting. You were saving a life after all."

              "True." Lexa lightly gripped Clarke's chin with her pointer finger and thumb before pressing a kiss to her lips. She went to deepen it but Clarke pulled away.

              Lexa dropped her hand to her side and took a step back. "Sorry," she said, dejectedly.

              Clarke reached for Lexa's hand and pulled her back to her, placing a kiss on her cheek. "I just want us to talk before we get carried away."

              Lexa nodded. "Of course," she gestured to the living room and Clarke made her way in that direction. "Do you want anything to drink or eat?"

              "No, I'm fine. Thanks." Clarke sat down on the couch and Lexa sat down on the couch across from her. They were silent for a moment before Lexa began. "Costia was a very important person to me. When she decided it was best to leave, I was heartbroken. It took a few months but I'm moving forward, Clarke. And I want to move forward with you. I don't play games when it comes to things like this. I like you and I want us to keep doing what we're doing. I hope you want the same thing."

              Clarke brushed a strand of hair behind her ear as she thought about Lexa's words. She needed to be honest. "I could fall for you. I've already started-- it's just... it's a lot. It scares me. You have this woman you loved and I don't know if I can be what she was for you. I don't know if I can make you happy. I don't want you to realize I was a bad idea and break my heart. God, I don't even know that I won't break yours. I tried to be in a committed relationship. I tried so hard to love Finn and I still couldn't. He's dead because I was incapable of loving him."

              Lexa got up from her seat and moved to sit down next to Clarke. "Hey," she took one of Clarke's hands into her own. "Finn's death wasn't your fault. You shouldn’t blame yourself for that. I want to take a chance on us. I'm willing to put my heart on the line to see what could come of this," she gestured between them. "And I promise I'll do my best not to hurt you. I want you, Clarke. I want everything you are. Commitment problems and all."

              Clarke laughed lightly at that. "I'm sorry I'm a mess."

              Lexa placed a kiss on Clarke's temple. "Everyone's a mess. Some just hide it better than others." Lexa stood up from the couch and moved to a corner of the living room where a box rested. She picked it up and placed it on the coffee table in front of Clarke. "This is a box of Costia's things." She sat down next to Clarke again. "I haven't looked in it since I packed it months ago. I told myself I would go through it once before donating whatever's in here."

              Clarke placed a hand on Lexa's knee. "We can go through it together and you can tell me more about her."

              Lexa shook her head. "You don't have to do that."

              Clarke squeezed Lexa's knee comfortingly. "I want to." And she did. She wanted to know about this woman who had impacted Lexa's life and she knew it would be good for the surgeon.

              "If you're sure," Lexa said, not wanting to scare Clarke off by going through her ex's things.

              Clarke linked her hand with Lexa’s and brought it up to her lips to kiss it. "I am.”

 

 

 

              Lexa's eyes fluttered open and the smell of breakfast hit her nose immediately. After going through Costia's things, she and Clarke had talked a lot more about past relationships, which led Lexa to learning a lot about Clarke's likes and dislikes when it came to relationships. Lexa had then convinced Clarke to spend the night in order for them to get in some "intense cuddling" before they fell asleep.

              Lexa got out of bed, stretching as she entered the bathroom. She brushed her teeth and washed her face before heading into the kitchen. She smiled when she saw Clarke at the stove wearing her gym shorts and t-shirt. “You look really hot in my clothes.” She wrapped her arms around the blonde’s waist and buried her face into the crook of her neck.

              Clarke smiled as Lexa nuzzled into her neck. “You’re like a puppy.”

              “You smell good,” Lexa said, simply. “How are you feeling?”

              “Pretty good. I’m glad we talked.”

              “See? Running isn’t always the solution,” Lexa said as she moved her hands to grip Clarke’s waist. “And I enjoyed our talk, too. I didn’t know I needed that until last night. Thanks for letting me talk about Costia.”

               “Of course.” Clarke used a spatula to pick up the pancake in the pan and add it to a stack of others. She turned off the stove and turned to face Lexa. “Hungry?”

              “You could say that,” Lexa answered before kissing Clarke.

              Clarke kissed her back for a few seconds before gently pushing the brunette away. “We don’t have time for breakfast _and_ sex.”

              “Then I’m all for sex.”

              Clarke chuckled as she moved out of Lexa’s reach. “No, we’re eating.”

              Lexa sighed. “Fine.” She gestured to the stack of pancakes. “Those are a lot of pancakes.”

              “I’m going to bring some over to Raven and Octavia.” Clarke handed Lexa a plate. “I’ll be right back.” She took the stack of pancakes and Lexa smiled as she watched Clarke exit the apartment.

              Clarke knocked on her apartment door since she hadn’t bothered to grab her key. Seconds later, Octavia opened the door and her eyes widened at the sight of pancakes. “This looks delicious.” She took the plate and headed into the kitchen where Raven was about to pour herself a bowl of cereal.

              “Yes,” Raven said as she tossed the cereal box to the side. “You get laid and we get pancakes. I’m loving this.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes as she smiled. “We just talked last night.”

              “I’m guessing it was a good talk,” Octavia said as she grabbed syrup from one of the cupboards.

              “It was,” Clarke confirmed. “I feel a lot better about becoming more serious with her.”

              Raven grinned. “Aw, Clarke wants Lexa to be her girlfriend.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “I’m going back to Lexa’s. I’ll see you two in a bit.”

              “Thanks for the food!” Raven called to Clarke as she made her way to the door.

              “Yeah, thanks!” Octavia added before Clarke exited the apartment. She handed Raven a fork as she said her next words. “Think she’s done running?”

              “Only time will tell,” Raven answered.

 

 

 

 

              Lexa walked into a hospital room where she had been paged and saw Monty looking over a patient. “You paged me?”

              Monty looked surprised to see Lexa. “Um, I actually meant to page Doctor Griffin.” He pulled his phone from his pocket to see if he had really paged Lexa instead.

              “Well, I’m here,” Lexa replied. “What do you need? Unless you’d rather talk to Doctor Griffin.”

              “No, uh, I could talk to you. Clarke’s just not as-- um, never mind.” Monty put his phone away and excused himself from his patient before moving outside of the room to talk to Lexa. “Mr. Carson seems to be experiencing uncontrollable twitching. “A bunch of tests have been run and I’m coming up short.” He handed Lexa his tablet with Mr. Carson’s test results on it.

              Clarke approached the two and looked at Monty. “Doctor Green, my labs?”

              Monty made an apologetic face. “Sorry, Doctor Griffin. I got sidetracked. I’ll go see if they’re done.”

              Clarke looked at the tablet Lexa was staring at. “What’s going on?”

              “Monty says this patient keeps twitching and he can’t find a reason.” Lexa swiped the screen and it moved to a picture of the man’s swollen wrists. She swiped it again and a picture of a rash showed up.

              Clarke held out her hand for the tablet. “May I?”

              Lexa placed it in her hand and leaned against the wall. “What are you doing tonight?”

              Clarke smiled as she read over the notes about Mr. Carson. “Why? Have something planned?”

              Lexa smirked. “I do. A no clothes required night at my place.”

              “That sounds like a night that I can get behind.” Clarke furrowed her brows as she read over the notes on the tablet. “Swollen wrists, twitching, a rash and a fever.” Clarke repeated the symptoms several times before a thought struck her. She entered the hospital room and smiled at the man. “Hi, Mr. Carson. I’m Doctor Griffin.” She then gestured to Lexa, who had walked in behind her. “And this is Doctor Woods. Have you had strep throat recently?”

              “Strep? No. I had a sore throat about two weeks ago, though,” the middle-aged man answered.

              Lexa realized where Clarke was going with this. “Did you get antibiotics for it?”

              Mr. Carson shrugged. “Didn’t see the need. I took Nyquil and let it fade away on its own.”

              “Well, Mr. Carson, I think you actually did have strep throat and-,” Clarke stopped when the man’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and the monitor flat-lined. “Shit.”

              Lexa looked out of the room. “Get me a crash cart!” She yelled down the hall to the nurses before returning to the patient, who Clarke had started chest compressions on. “Rheumatic heart disease. Nice catch.”

              “Well, we won’t be sure until we run some more tests,” Clarke said as two nurses rushed in with the crash cart.

              Lexa grabbed the paddles and held them up right so the nurse could squeeze conductive gel onto them. She rubbed the paddles together and moved to Mr. Carson. “Charge to two-hundred.”

              “Charged,” a nurse said.

              “Clear,” Lexa said, making Clarke stop her compressions. She placed the paddles on the man’s chest and shocked him. They waited a moment and the monitor began to beep again. Lexa handed the paddles back to one of the nurses before looking at Clarke. “Can I just say you catching that he had a rare disease is a total turn on?”

              “Ohmygod, stop talking and get him stabilized,” Clarke said as she checked the man’s vitals. Lexa smirked and did as she was told.

 

 

              Clarke was sitting in the cafeteria later that day with her roommates when Lexa sat down beside her. “You wanted an update on Mr. Carson?”

              “I did,” Clarke confirmed before stuffing a fry in her mouth.

              Lexa reached over to take a fry before speaking. “He had strep and it went untreated so he developed rheumatic heart disease, which led him to needing a valve repair.”

              Octavia bounced in her chair. “Can I take lead?”

              Lexa took the fry that Clarke had just picked up and winked at the pouty face she received for stealing the blonde’s food. She looked at Octavia, who looked hopeful as she waited for an answer. “Why does Mr. Carson need a valve repair?”

              “Well you said he had rheumatic heart disease, which means his valves were scarred,” Octavia answered.

              Lexa stared at the brunette for a beat. “Okay, you can take lead. The surgery isn’t for another few days so make sure you’re ready to execute it perfectly.” She grabbed yet another fry before placing a kiss on Clarke’s cheek and leaving. Clarke smiled at the action, not minding the public display at all. Her mother already knew so it didn’t matter.

              “You two are disgustingly cute,” Raven stated as she tossed one of her own fries at her best friend.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen**

 

Two weeks later...

 

              Clarke was lying in Lexa's bed with a bed sheet being the only thing keeping her decent. "Your parents' gala is tonight," she said as Lexa laid beside her, catching her breath.

              "I'm not going," Lexa breathed out. She wiped a hand over her sweaty forehead. "Damn, that was amazing. I mean, it's amazing all the time but... fuck, you really outdid yourself, Clarke."

              Clarke rolled over onto her side and kissed Lexa on the corner of her lips. "So I was thinking we could go to the gala together."

              Lexa ignored Clarke's words and moved to get out of bed. "We should get ready for work."

              Clarke discarded the bed sheet as she quickly moved to straddle Lexa so she couldn't escape. "Listen."

              Lexa's eyes trailed Clarke's naked form. "I can't do much of that with you naked on top of me."

              Clarke pressed herself against Lexa's stomach. "We can go another round before work if you cooperate."

              Lexa trailed her hands up Clarke's thighs. "Or we could just go another around regardless." A thought hit Lexa and she narrowed her eyes at the blonde. "Did we have mind-blowing sex because you thought I'd be more compliant after?"

              Clarke smirked. "Yes."

              Lexa scoffed. "I feel used. You're a horrible person. And I'm offended you think I'm that easy."

              "Just hear me out, please," Clarke continued.

              Lexa sighed. "Fine... but after-,"

              Clarke frowned. "After wh-," she was flipped onto her back and Lexa was hovering over her before she could get her words out. The brunette's lips were on her own and she moaned as Lexa slipped a thigh between her legs. "Wait, not like this." She pushed at the brunette's hips and guided her so that she was between her legs before pulling her down so that their centers were aligned.

              Lexa bent down and nipped at Clarke's bottom lip as she moved against her. "Fuck, Clarke," she moaned as the blonde matched her thrusts. After a few minutes, Clarke moved her hands down to Lexa's ass and pushed her harder against her. "Go faster.”

              "Not yet," Lexa said, enjoying their pace just the way it was.

              "Lexa," Clarke whined. "I need you to go faster." Clarke could feel herself teetering on the edge of orgasm; she just needed Lexa to take her over.

              Lexa moved her lips to Clarke's ear as she slowed down even more. "I could stop. Do you want that?" Clarke shook her head frantically. "Then we go slow." Lexa pressed harder into Clarke as she slid her center teasingly slow against hers.

              Clarke let out a strangled cry of pleasure at the action. "Lexa."

              Lexa sucked her bottom lip between her teeth as she watched Clarke's facial expressions change as she pleasured her. She was mesmerized by the blonde's beauty.

              Clarke's nails dug into Lexa's shoulders as she continued being teased by the brunette. Lexa could feel her own orgasm approaching but she wasn't ready to be brought over the edge yet. She stilled her movements and Clarke groaned in frustration.

              Lexa moved up so that she was straddling Clarke. She chuckled as Clarke glared at her. She ran a hand through her hair and winked at her fellow doctor.

              "I hate you," Clarke said, breathlessly.

              "Don't worry. I'll take care of you," Lexa promised. "It'll just take some time."

              Clarke huffed. "Lexa, make me come," she ordered.

              Lexa grinned at the demand. "Or what?"

                Clarke moved her hand between Lexa's legs and pressed her thumb into her. Lexa gasped at the sudden pressure and moved her hand around Clarke's wrist with the intention of pulling her hand away, but then Clarke entered her with two fingers and Lexa released her grip, placing her hand on the bed in order to keep herself upright. "Ohmygod," she rushed out as her head fell back.

              Clarke grinned and continued her actions until she felt Lexa tightening around her fingers. She pulled out and smiled at the whine Lexa let out. She pulled Lexa down to her and guided the brunette's hand down between her legs, forcing three of Lexa's fingers inside of her. "You don't come until I do."

              "Fuck, you're so hot," Lexa breathed out as she began to move her fingers inside of Clarke. She crashed her lips against the blonde's and pressed her thumb to her clit. She broke the kiss and nipped at Clarke's jaw. "If you want to come so badly, then I hope you're ready for this." She moved down Clarke's body and Clarke had to grab a pillow to place over her face as she felt Lexa's tongue against her. She came within seconds and let out a load moan as Lexa only sped up her efforts instead of stopping.

              Lexa reveled in the muffled moans and curses she could hear as Clarke tried to stay quiet. She alternated between sucking and licking Clarke to another climax, only doubling her efforts when Clarke tossed the pillow aside and reached down to tangle her fingers in her hair.

              "Lexa, I'm gonna come," she moaned out as her hips bucked off the bed.

              Lexa moaned, sending vibrations against Clarke's clit, causing the blonde to plummet over the edge.

              Lexa kissed her way back up Clarke's body until she reached her lips. She kissed her gently before cuddling into her side. Clarke remained silent as she caught her breath. She was looking up at the ceiling as if she had just had an outer-body experience.

              After a few seconds, Lexa kissed Clarke on the cheek. "We should shower... separately. We're already cutting it close." She got out of bed and smiled down at the blonde. "I'll drive you to work so we can talk in the car."

              Finally feeling like she could function properly, Clarke looked at Lexa in disbelief. "You give me great morning sex and now you're kicking me out? I think I'm the one who should feel used right now."

              "We can't be late." Lexa gathered Clarke's clothes up from the night before. "Go shower." She tossed the woman's clothes onto the bed. "And you better believe I'm finding you at work later for some on-call room fun."

              Clarke watched Lexa disappear into her bathroom before laughing lightly. There was definitely never a dull moment between the two.

 

 

 

              Lexa pulled out onto the street and glanced over at Clarke. "Okay, let's talk."

              Clarke turned her head away from the window to look at Lexa. "You should go to the gala. I'd be your date."

              Lexa was silent as she tapped her fingers against the steering wheel. "Can I introduce you as my girlfriend if I decide to go?"

              Clarke was slightly taken aback by the question. They hadn't labeled their relationship yet but they were definitely hitting that stage where they should probably talk about it. Honestly, they were basically a couple and Clarke was enjoying how things were going. "Are we having this conversation?"

              "Yeah, I guess we are," Lexa replied. "I want you to be my girlfriend, Clarke."

              Lexa kept her eyes straight ahead as she spoke confidently, but Clarke could tell she was nervous from how she was clenching her jaw and how her grip on the steering wheel at tightened. "I would love to be your girlfriend, Lexa."

              Lexa's eyes widened as she glanced at Clarke. "Really?"

              Clarke laughed. "Yes, really. Relax, Lexa."

              Lexa let out a breath. "I'm relaxed. So why do you want me to go to this gala?"

              "Because your parents are assholes who think you can't succeed without their help. I want you to show them how great you are doing without their involvement. And I want everyone who might have negative opinions of you because of what happened to see that you're unaffected by them."

              Lexa smiled. "Like a big 'fuck you' to everyone?"

              "Exactly. Besides, I learned that my mom was invited as well as my godmother. You remember Cece, right?"

              "Doctor Cartwig," Lexa replied. "Yes, I do remember her."

              "And my mom's bringing my dad as her date, so that's already three people you know you'll get along with. Oh, and Anya already texted me saying she'd be going. Your friends from Grounder Medical will be there, too. Anya mentioned a Doctor Forrester and a Doctor Groves."

              Lexa smiled. "Indra and Lincoln. I would actually like you to meet them. They're good people. Indra can come off as a little standoffish and well, she is, but she did a lot for me."

              "So you'll go?" Clarke asked, hoping the answer would be what she wanted.

              Lexa knew Clarke was right. It would be good for her to go. "I guess I'm going." Clarke smiled, triumphantly. "But only because of the morning sex," the brunette added with a smirk.

 

 

              Lexa panted as Clarke pulled away from their kiss to pull off her scrub top. They were in an on-call room trying to make the best of their downtime. Clarke leaned back down, connecting her lips with Lexa's.

              Lexa pushed Clarke down by her shoulder. "I want to feel your tongue on me." Clarke went to pull Lexa's pants off but then the sound of a page sounded in the room.

              Lexa let out a frustrated breath as Clarke leant over the bed to pick up both their phones. "Ambulance bay." She placed Lexa's phone on her chest as she got up to grab her top. Lexa got up as well and straightened out her scrubs before leaving the room with Clarke and rushing outside. They each started pulling gloves on as other doctors also waited for the ambulances to pull in.

              "What've we got?" Clarke asked Bellamy.

              "A few college kids decided they wanted to throw a party in an abandoned warehouse and the whole thing came crashing down on them.

              "How many?" Lexa asked.

              "About twenty," Bellamy answered as the ambulances started arriving.

              A young man was quickly unloaded from one of the vehicles and Clarke moved to him as Lexa moved to another vehicle with Octavia. They rushed inside, each listening to their respective EMTs tell them what injuries their patients had sustained.

              Clarke placed a stethoscope to her unconscious patient’s chest once he was moved off the gurney. She placed the end of her stethoscope to his chest and could hear rattling as he breathed. “I need a chest x-ray here,” she said to Monty. “Monitor him and come find me when the x-ray is ready,” she said before moving on to another patient.

              “Maybe we won’t make the gala,” Lexa said as she was stabilizing a patient.

              “We’re going,” Clarke said as she looked at the young man who had just been rolled in with a piece of wood sticking from his chest. “Even if we end up being ridiculously late.”

               

 

 

              Clarke rushed into the locker room and started immediately pulling her scrubs off. "I'm sorry," she said to Lexa, who was already dressed in an elegant black dress.

              Lexa waved her off. "We can be fashionably late. It’s not like I’m in any rush to see my parents." She turned to put her sneakers in her locker just as Abby walked into the locker room.

              "Clarke, you're not dressed yet," the older woman chided.

              "I've been busy with the whole life saving thing," Clarke said as she continued to undress.

              Abby spotted scratches between Lexa's shoulder blades and shook her head. "Clarke, why do you have to be so rough with the girl? Look at those scratches."

              Clarke frowned as she pulled her neatly folded dress out of her locker. "What are you-," she turned and saw the deep scratches in Lexa's skin. A blush immediately crept up Clarke's neck. "Um, I didn't do that," she rushed out.

              Lexa had felt the scratches stinging her earlier but she had forgotten about them as the day went on. "Yes you did."

              "Lexa." Clarke's eyes widened.

              "What? I don't want her thinking I'm sleeping with someone else," Lexa replied as she pulled her hair out of the updo that she had it in. She ruffled her hair and ran her fingers through it to comb it out.

              "Much better," Abby said. "You two hurry up. I'm going to pick up Jake and meet you two there."

              "Yes, ma'am," Lexa replied. Clarke tossed her scrub top at Lexa once Abby left causing Lexa to laugh. “Hey, it’s not my fault you clawed up my back. Now get dressed before I decide sex in a locker room is something I want to cross off my list.”

              “Not happening,” Clarke replied as she stepped into her dress. “Not tonight, anyway.”

              Lexa moved to stand behind Clarke and zipped up the blonde’s dress before placing a kiss on the back of her neck. “Sure you want to willingly deal with my parents?”

              “I have a bottle of something strong waiting for us if the night is a total disaster,” Clarke assured her.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

Lexa reluctantly got out of her car and smoothed her dress out before looking at Clarke over the hood of her car. “Remind me why I’m doing this.”

              Clarke moved over to Lexa and placed a kiss on her cheek. “To show your parents and everyone else that you’re doing just fine. We definitely don’t have to stay for the whole thing.”

              Lexa nodded and linked her fingers with Clarke as they made their way to the backyard where the gala was taking place. People filled the area already and Lexa was familiar with a lot of the doctors already from past galas.  

              "There are your parents," Lexa said, nodding to where Abby was drinking a glass of wine as she spoke with Jake and CeCe. They made their way over to them and CeCe happily greeted them.

              "I've heard you two have taken a step in your relationship," CeCe began.

              Clarke shook her head in amusement. "You make it sound like we're engaged or something. We're just officially together."

              "Well you two do make a fine couple," CeCe stated.

              "Agreed," Jake jumped in. "But Lexa, we're going to have to talk about respecting my daughter in on-call rooms."

              Lexa's eyes widened and Clarke rolled her eyes. "Mom," she whined.

              "What?" Abby chuckled. "I couldn't keep that to myself."

              "We weren't even doing anything," Clarke muttered.

              "Because I interrupted," Abby said.

              Before anyone could say anything else, Lexa heard someone call her. "Lexa Woods have you forgotten about me?"

              Lexa smiled at the voice and turned around to face the man she had worked with at Grounder Medical. "Lincoln," she greeted him. "It's good to see you. And no, I haven't forgotten about you. I just assumed you were upset with me."

              "For leaving?" Lincoln asked. "I was sad to see you go but I wasn't upset. How have things been? Anya says you're dating someone."

              "I've been well." Lexa smiled as she placed a hand on Clarke's lower back. "And this is Clarke, my girlfriend."

              Lincoln reached out to shake Clarke's hand. "It's a pleasure."

              Clarke shook his hand. "Likewise. I could use something to drink. Care to join me? You can tell me all the things Lexa probably doesn't want me to know." Clarke pulled away from Lexa and winked at her girlfriend. "I'll bring you a glass," she said before walking away with Lincoln.

              Lexa was watching Clarke leave; taking in how beautiful she looked, when she was brought out of her thoughts by Jake.

              "She'll be back," he said, amusedly.

              Lexa blushed slightly as she returned her attention to Clarke's parents and godmother. She wasn’t able to get a word out before she saw her parents walking her way. Her guard went up immediately and Jake noticed as Lexa’s relaxed demeanor slipped away.  

              “Alexandria,” Ava greeted her daughter. “I’m pleased to see that you decided to show up.” She then looked to Abby, CeCe and Jake with unfamiliarity in her eyes.

              “Mother, father—this is Doctor Griffin, Doctor Cartwig and Mr. Griffin.”

              “Right, of course,” Ava smiled. “Ark Hospital and Mount Weather Medical. It’s a pleasure.”

              Vincent looked to Abby. “We were surprised when our daughter decided to transfer hospitals. Doctor Jaha must’ve given her a great incentive to leave. Is he around?”

              “He couldn’t make it,” Abby replied. “And it’s an honor to have Lexa with us. She’s amazing at what she does.”

              Vincent smiled. “We worked really hard to make her one of the greats.”

              Lexa fought the urge to roll her eyes and bit back any sarcastic remark she wanted to make. As she went to respond, someone else beat her to it.

              “Funny, I could’ve sworn it was Lexa who pulled all-nighters and worked her ass off to get where she is.” Lexa smiled at the sound of Indra’s voice.

              Vincent laughed. “Of course. I just meant that we’ve instilled that work ethic onto her.”

              “Sure you did,” Indra replied before giving her attention to Lexa. “Lexa,” she greeted her. “I hope you’re doing well at Ark Hospital.”

              Lexa smirked. “I’m not embarrassing G.M. by performing poorly if that’s what you’re asking.”

              Indra had a hint of a smile pulling at her lips. “It is. And I’ve heard that you’re dating.”

              “Geez, did Anya tell everyone?”

              “It was a hot topic during our heart transplant the other day,” Indra answered. “So where is this trauma surgeon I’ve heard so much about?”

              “Clarke is definitely an upgrade from Lexa’s last girlfriend,” Ava stated, unnecessarily.

              Lexa narrowed her eyes at her mother. “Although started under inappropriate circumstances, there was nothing wrong with my last girlfriend,” she said, calmly. “This doesn’t need to be brought up every time we talk.”

              “It’s just horrible how you let your career go,” Ava continued. “It used to be important to you.”

              Abby frowned, not liking how Lexa’s parents were attacking her. “There’s more to life than someone’s career.”

              “You might not have raised your daughter to go after success but we most certainly have,” Ava commented.

              Clarke chose that moment to return to the group. “Actually,” Clarke began as she handed Lexa a glass of champagne, “my parents did raise me to go after success. They just didn’t shove their life goals for me down my throat.”

              Ava and Vincent looked taken aback. “Are you insinuating that we do that?” Ava asked.

              Clarke forced a smile. “Of course not. I’m sure you respect Lexa’s choices regarding her own life.”

              Indra smirked at Clarke’s words. “You must be Clarke.”  

              “I am,” Clarke confirmed. “I’m sorry, I’m at a disadvantage. You are?”

              “Indra Forrester,” the woman answered.

              Clarke smiled in realization. “Lexa’s told me about you. It’s a pleasure.”

              “I would say the same but I’m not sure if I like you yet,” Indra replied. “But I must say, so far, the odds are in your favor.”

              Vincent spotted someone he wanted to speak to and looked around at everyone. “If you’ll excuse us, there’s someone I want to speak to. I’m sure we’ll see each other again before the night ends.”

              Once they were gone, Lexa looked to Abby and Jake. “I’m sorry about them. I hope they didn’t offend you.”

              “Of course not,” Abby assured her.

              An older man approached Lexa. “Doctors Woods. It’s good to see you. I was surprised to hear that you had gotten let go from G.M.”

              Lexa schooled her expression in order to hide her irritation. “I wasn’t let go, Doctor Banks. I chose to leave because of personal reasons.”

              The man raised an eyebrow. “Personal reasons?”

              Lexa nodded firmly. “Correct. But enough about me. How’s your son? Last I heard he was in rehab.”

              The man cleared his throat. “Oh um-,”

              Indra rolled her eyes. “Bennett, stop being a part of the gossip mill.”

               “Yes, Chief,” the surgeon said before walking away.

              “I need a drink to deal with these people all night,” Indra stated before excusing herself.

              Clarke ran her hand up and down Lexa’s upper arm. “You okay?”

              “Yeah, I can handle idiots,” Lexa replied before gulping back her drink. “My parents are definitely just getting started, though. I’m going to get another drink.”

             

 

 

              A little over thirty minutes later, Clarke was having a conversation with Anya and Lincoln since Lexa had been whisked off by her parents to converse with people Clarke was sure they deemed as more important.

              “She’s fine,” Anya assured Clarke as the blonde glanced back over at her girlfriend for the umpteenth time. “She’s probably agitated and ready to tell her parents off but she’s fine.”

              Clarke let out a breath. “I really don’t like them. Why do they have to be so controlling?” She looked back over to Lexa and could tell the brunette was tired of talking to the doctors around her. “I’ll be right back.” She left Anya and Lincoln so she could join Lexa. As she neared her, she could hear Vincent telling her something.

              “Your mother and I have been thinking since you don’t want to go back to G.M., it only makes sense that you join us at our private practice.”

              Lexa laughed at the words. “Really? That’s just asking for trouble. The three of us can barely stay in a room for thirty seconds before we’re arguing. It’ll be like my teen years all over again.”

              The doctors around them laughed and Ava narrowed her eyes at Lexa before smiling at the others. “She’s only kidding.”

              “I’m not,” Lexa said. “Ark Hospital is-,”

              “For Christ’s sake, Alexandria,” Ava snapped. “Ark Hospital is not an option. I get that you want to stay there because of whatever crush you have on that trauma doctor, but you’ve got to think of your future.” The other doctors sensed the tension and left so the family could have their privacy.

              “I don’t want any part of your private practice,” Lexa stated firmly. “I’m tired of living in your shadow. Do you remember my first surgery?”

              “Of course we do,” Vincent replied. “You did a decent job.”

              Lexa laughed dryly. “A decent job? I did damn good for a first surgery. I was so pleased with myself and I thought you’d finally be proud of me. You weren’t. You told me everything you would’ve done differently. You two are never happy with what I accomplish. You always want more. That entire hospital is just full of bad memories for me.”

              Ava rolled her eyes. “You are being so melodramatic. Stop it. People will hear you.”

              “I am done trying to make you proud of me,” Lexa continued. “I am happy at Ark Hospital and I don’t want to hear anything else about it.” Lexa walked off, not seeing that Clarke was near.

              Clarke approached Lexa’s parents with anger obvious on her face. “You have an amazing daughter and you’ve probably just lost her because you’re both too selfish to let her be happy. And you know what? She’s probably better off without you, which is a shame because all she’s ever wanted was to make you proud.”

              “You can’t-,”

              “I can,” Clarke cut Ava off. “Because I love your daughter and she deserves better.” Clarke began to walk off but then turned around to add something else. “And she hates the name Alexandria. It’s Lexa. I’m sure she’s probably mentioned that to you and you chose to ignore what she wanted because you’re a bunch of jerks.”

              “I think-,”

              “Don’t worry,” Clarke cut Ava off once again. “I’m leaving.” She made her way over to Anya, who had been watching Clarke deliver her verbal beating. “Do you think you, Lincoln and Indra might want to continue this party elsewhere? Does pizza and alcohol sound good to you?”

              Anya grinned. “Absolutely. I knew I liked you, Griffin.”

              Clarke smiled. “Can you tell my parents we’re heading to their place? I’ll go find Lexa.”

              Clarke made her way to The Woods’ residence where she had seen Lexa disappear inside. As she looked around the house for the brunette, she thought back to what she had told Lexa’s parents. Her confession was sinking in and she took a deep breath as she tried not to let her feelings overwhelm her. _This isn’t bad._ Clarke thought as she continued to look around the house. _Just sit on this information for a few days and then take it from there._ When Clarke turned a corner in the big house, she saw a light on down the hall and made her way towards it. “Lexa?” She entered the bathroom and saw Lexa dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. “Hey,” Clarke said gently. “Are you okay?”

              Lexa nodded and let out a breath. “I’m just frustrated.”

              Clarke felt guilty. “I’m sorry I made you attend this thing.”

              “No, this was good. I needed to finally get all that out. Maybe they’ll just stop talking to me altogether now. That would be better than them pestering me.”

              Clarke pulled Lexa into a hug. “Or maybe they’ll realize the error of their ways and be better.”

              Lexa buried her face in the crook of Clarke’s neck. “Doubt it. We should get out of here.”

              Clarke pressed a kiss to the side of Lexa’s head. “Feel up to hanging out with my parents and a few of our friends back at my parents’ place? I’m going to call Octavia and Raven so they can join us.”

              Lexa smiled and raised her head to look at Clarke. “That sounds like a good time.”

             

 

 

One month later…

              Clarke had yet to tell Lexa that she loved her because quite frankly, the words kind of terrified her. She had gone to say it once but the words got stuck in her throat and she decided not to try again anytime soon.

              “You okay?” Lexa approached the blonde who had been staring off blankly into space.

              Clarke pushed her thoughts away and smiled. “Yeah, I was just thinking about my schedule for the day.”

              Lexa handed the brunette a cup of coffee. “Go on a date with me tonight?”

              Clarke sipped her coffee and let out a hum of approval. “This is so good. Thank you. And a date sounds good but can it be a laidback night in?”

               “Whatever you want,” Lexa replied. “I just want to spend time with you.”   

              “Aw,” Raven said as she approached her friends. “You didn’t even say that to me and I want to have sex with you.”

              Clarke grinned as she shook her head. “Don’t put any ideas in her head. I’ll be too tired tonight for strenuous activity.” Clarke had been on-call last night so she had spent the night at the hospital and her shift wasn’t ending until seven tonight. Lexa received a page and quickly pressed a kiss to Clarke’s temple before taking off down the hall.

              “You tell her yet? Raven asked.

              “Tell her what?” Clarke asked, playing dumb.

              “That you love her,” Raven said. “You said you were going to.”

              “Yeah, eventually. Now’s not the right time.”

              Raven looked at Clarke suspiciously. “You’re not going to freak out and run are you?”

              “No,” Clarke assured her. “I just don’t know how to tell her. I’ve never said the words before… not like this. It’s… I want to do it right.”

              Raven reached out and pinched Clarke on the cheek. “You’re so cute when you’re in love.”

              Clarke swatted her hand away. “Shut up,” she blushed lightly.

              “Want to know what I think?” Raven asked in a singsong voice.

              “You’ll tell me either way,” Clarke stated.

              Raven’s smile widened. “You’re afraid to tell her because you think she doesn’t feel the same way yet but rest assured, Clarke, that woman is in love with you.”

              “You think so?” Clarke asked with uncertainty.

              “Positive,” Raven replied. “So don’t be afraid. It’ll all be okay.”

 

 

 

              Lexa had just finished cooking one of Clarke’s favorite meals and was now setting the table up. Her girlfriend was going to be there in a few minutes and she wanted everything to be perfect. She headed into her room and pulled aromatherapy oils out of her dresser drawer so she could set them on the nightstand. She knew Clarke would be tired and stressed out from her day so she wanted to treat her to a relaxing evening.

              She went back into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of wine from the fridge, setting it on the table before grabbing two wine glasses. “Okay,” Lexa said as she ran a hand through her hair. “Now to wait.” She was about to sit down in the living room when she heard a knock at the door. Smiling, thinking it was Clarke, Lexa made her way to the front door. As she pulled the door open she said, “I have-,” She froze and her heart sped up at the sight before her. “C-Costia.”

              The woman gave a gentle smile. “Sorry to just show up like this. I’ve been dying to see you and I was too scared to call because I thought you’d hang-up on me.”

              Lexa felt herself becoming angry. “You left me. I thought you were dead.”

              Costia reached out to place a hand on the side of Lexa’s face. “I decided to keep fighting. I went to other doctors. I did natural treatments and they worked for me. I would’ve contacted you sooner but I wanted to be in remission first.”

              Lexa brought her hand up to push Costia’s hand away but instead she closed her fingers around Costia’s wrist. She remained silent for a moment before letting out a shaky breath. “I’m happy to see you’re okay.” She pulled the woman to her for a hug and squeezed her tight. “I’m so pissed at you for leaving the way you did.”

              “I’m sorry,” Costia said as she hugged Lexa back. “I had to let you go. I was getting worse and I didn’t want to put you through that.” Costia pulled back and smiled at Lexa. “I’ve missed you.”

              Lexa gently pulled Costia’s hand away from her face. “I’ve missed you, too.” She was about to tell Costia that she had met someone special to her when the brunette leaned forward and kissed her. Lexa immediately stepped back away from Costia but she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Her heart dropped when she saw Clarke staring at her with unshed tears. “Clarke,” she began.

              “Don’t.” Clarke recognized Costia and knew how much the woman meant to Lexa. She made her way to her front door and dug for her keys with shaky hands.

              Lexa moved to Clarke, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Clarke, please. Hear me out.” Clarke shrugged Lexa’s hand off as she opened the front door. Lexa didn’t want to fight with Clarke in the hallway with Costia watching on so she let the woman slam the door in her face before turning back to face Costia.

 

 

 


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty**

              Lexa was sitting in the living room silently as Costia sat across from her waiting for the doctor to say something. Lexa had sent a text to both Raven and Octavia asking them to hear her out when she came over later because Clarke had jumped to conclusions but she hadn’t received a response yet from either of them.

              “I’m sorry I kissed you,” Costia finally broke the suffocating silence. “I just thought…,” Costia sighed and shook her head. “I didn’t mean to ruin your night. I can talk to that woman for you. Is she your girlfriend?”

              Lexa nodded. “She is. And it’s okay, I’ll talk to her.” Lexa’s heart hadn’t stopped pounding in her chest since she opened her door for Costia minutes ago. “It is great to see you, Costia. How’d you know where to find me?”

              “I went to Grounder Medical and asked for you,” Costia replied. “A nurse said you transferred here so I drove over and sat in the parking lot trying to work up the nerve to go inside. That’s when I saw you exit the hospital and I decided to follow you. That was yesterday. I didn’t work up the courage to come over until tonight. I really am sorry. I’m such an idiot. I mean, I never expected you to still be single but part of me was hoping you would be and that we could start over.”

              “Costia-,” Lexa began but the other woman held up a hand to stop her.

              “Does she make you happy?” Costia asked.

              A faint smile pulled at Lexa’s lips. “She does.”

              Costia matched Lexa’s smile. “Tell me about her? I’ve got to make sure I’m leaving you in good hands.”

              Lexa laughed lightly. “She’s a trauma doctor. She actually couldn’t stand me at first. We’ve come a long way, though. She likes to cook with me and make sure I’m doing things not medical-related during my downtime. She told my parents off a few weeks ago.”

              Costia looked impressed. “I’m definitely a fan of her already. How’d you two finally end up together if she didn’t like you?”

              Lexa let out a breath. “A lot of work. She didn’t make it easy by any means but I didn’t mind working for what I wanted. I spent thirty minutes in a flower shop one day trying to find her the right arrangement but then I knew it was too cliché to impress a woman like her, you know? But I like it that way- she challenges me and it’s always fun. I can’t even begin to describe how amazing she is. She is a little of everything- gentle, bold, guarded, vulnerable.”

              Costia could tell that Lexa was head over heels for the trauma doctor just from listening to her talk about her. “Does she know?”

              Lexa frowned. “Know what?”

              “That you’re in love with her,” Costia clarified.

              “I’m not sure,” Lexa admitted. “That topic is a sensitive one. I don’t want to scare her off. Shit, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to go on like this. You’re not here for that.”

              “It’s fine, Lexa. I’m glad to see you so happy. You should go fix things with your girlfriend. I’m sorry again for causing problems.”

              Lexa stood up as Costia did. “Don’t worry about it. Thank you for coming to see me.” She stepped over to the woman and hugged her. “Maybe we can stay in contact?”

              “I’d like that,” Costia said. “Just give me some time, okay? I’ll be in touch.”

              Lexa knew that meant Costia hadn’t moved on and needed time to deal with her feelings, which made Lexa feel bad for how she went on about Clarke. She never meant to add salt to the wound. “Take care of yourself.”

              “I will,” Costia promised as they made their way to the front door. “Goodnight, Lexa.”

              “Goodnight.” Lexa watched the woman leave and took a moment to be happy that her ex was healthy and that she finally had closure. Taking a deep breath, Lexa stepped across the hall and knocked on the door.

              Raven opened the door and placed her hand on Lexa’s chest, pushing her back towards her own door. “You have thirty seconds to tell me why I shouldn’t execute my perfect plot to murder you.”

              “Can I just see Clarke, please?” Lexa asked as she glanced into the apartment hoping to catch a glimpse of the blonde.

              “Make that ten seconds,” Raven stated.

              Lexa sighed. “Costia kissed me but I pulled away immediately. I love Clarke. I don’t want anyone else. Costia’s my past; Clarke’s my future.”

              Raven stepped aside and gestured to her apartment. “Go tell her that.”

              “Thank you.” Lexa stepped into the apartment and headed for Clarke’s room. She looked back at Raven, who simply nodded her head. Lexa opened the door slowly and her heart broke immediately. Clarke was crying in bed while Octavia held her. “Clarke.”

              Octavia got up from the bed at surprising speed and pushed Lexa out of the room. “I don’t care that you’re my attending. I will kick your ass.”

              “She’s cool, Octavia,” Raven assured her. “Let her see Clarke.”

              Octavia narrowed her eyes at Lexa. “Fix things,” she warned before moving to go stand by Raven.

              Lexa entered Clarke’s room and closed the door. The blonde had gotten up and was not standing in the far corner of the room with her arms folded across her chest. “Clarke.” She stepped towards her girlfriend. “I didn’t kiss Costia. She kissed me but I didn’t allow it to happen. I swear, I backed away.”

              Clarke wiped the tears from her face. “I know.”

              Lexa frowned. “You do?”

              “I saw everything.”

              Lexa’s shoulders dropped. “Then why are you upset with me?”

              Clarke closed her eyes, willing her tears to stop. After a few seconds, she opened them and looked at Lexa. “I can’t compete with your first love- a first love you never even wanted to end things with. She’s back, Lexa. I know what that means for us and it hurts so much because…because I’m in love with you.” Clarke began to cry again and she covered her face with her hands as she tried to control her sobs. “I hate you so much for making me fall for you just to break my heart.”

              Lexa gently pulled Clarke’s hands away from her face. “Hey.” She looked into Clarke’s sad eyes. “You’re jumping to conclusions. I’m not going to hurt you, Clarke. I love you, too.”

              Clarke was stunned by Lexa’s words. “You’re not going back to Costia?”

              “No. I’m happy here with you. I meant it when I said that I want to move forward with you, Clarke.” Lexa watched as Clarke began to slowly drop her walls only to throw them back up within seconds as she pulled away from her. “Clarke, don’t run from me. I know what you’re thinking and you’re wrong.”

              Clarke took another breath before speaking. “How do you know what I’m thinking?”

              “Because I know you,” Lexa said. “And your brain likes to come up with the worst possible scenarios.” Lexa pulled Clarke back to her and placed a lingering kiss on her forehead. “Yes, I’ll be keeping in touch with Costia but no, I won’t realize that I’m still madly in love with her and leave you. You’re stuck with me. You’ve just go to want me.”

              “I do want you.”

              “Then we have no problems.”

              Clarke hugged Lexa and the two stood there for a few minutes just holding each other. Clarke was the one to finally pull away. “I’m sorry for-,”

              Lexa pressed a kiss to Clarke’s lips halting her apology. “You saw the first woman I was ever in love with kiss me. I think your reaction was justified. Thanks for talking to me, though, and telling me how you feel. I’m ridiculously in love with you and it feels good to finally say it.”

              Clarke smiled and kissed Lexa. The two got lost in the kiss and it wasn’t until they heard Raven that they pulled away. “Are you two having make-up sex? Do we need to leave?”

              “No, Raven,” Clarke replied.

              “Did you kill Lexa?” Raven continued. “I need to hear her voice to confirm that things didn’t end badly.”

              “I’m alive, Raven,” Lexa assured her.

              “Cool. Also, I went by your apartment for some food and saw that dinner you made. Thanks, I was starving.”

              Lexa rolled her eyes but she was smiling widely. “That wasn’t for you.”

              “No? Well it’s amazing either way,” Raven said. “Night, you two crazy kids.”

              The next voice was more timid. “Hey, Lexa,” Octavia began, “about threatening to kiss your ass- I meant it but I’m hoping you won’t hold it against me.”

              “We’ll see how I feel in the morning, Blake,” Lexa said, knowing she wouldn’t give the resident a hard time. She pecked Clarke on the lips before pulling away from her. “I did have a nice night planned for you. Think you’re up for it?”

              “Yeah, I’m definitely up for it,” Clarke said as she linked her fingers with Lexa’s, happy and relieved that things between them hadn’t been destroyed with the return of the brunette’s ex.   

                             


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty-One**

Anya was sitting with Lexa in her living room while the brunette told her about what had happened the night prior. When Lexa had called her that morning saying she wanted to talk, Anya could tell it was important and had been waiting for Lexa in the parking lot of her apartment building when the brunette got home from work.

              “I can’t believe she’s alive,” Anya said as she took in Lexa’s words. “Are you okay? Are you upset? I’d be upset. I can’t believe she would just show up.”

              “I feel guilty being upset,” Lexa admitted. “I’m relieved that she’s alive and doing well.”

              “You can be pissed, Lexa,” Anya assured her. “She should’ve contacted you a lot sooner. Did she think she could come back and that you two would just get back together?”

              Lexa sighed. “Stop attacking her, Anya. She-,”

              “She hurt you,” Anya stated. “And that automatically puts her on my shit list. So, what happens now? I’m just going to put it out there that I think Clarke is good for you but it’s your life. You can do whatever you want. I just hope you know that Clarke has been really good for you.”

              Lexa opened her mouth to respond but Anya continued. “Also, I like Clarke and her friends. If you two break-up, then I lose those friendships. Think about that.”

              Lexa rolled her eyes. “I’m glad you want me to make my decisions based off of what you want.” And I’m not breaking-up with Clarke just because Costia’s back. I love Costia and I hope we can manage to be friends or at least keep in touch but Clarke has my heart now. I think being with Costia helped prepare me for my relationship with Clarke. If I had met Clarke months ago before Costia, it would have never worked out. I was a completely different person. Maybe it is fate that things worked out this way.”

              Anya quirked a brow. “You don’t believe in fate.”

              Lexa shrugged. “This kind of feels like fate.”

              Anya rolled her eyes but a smile was pulling at her lips. “You must be in love.”

              Lexa smiled. “I am. I told Clarke last night.”

              Anya looked impressed. “Look at you going all in. Did she say it back or was it awkward?”

              “She said it back.”

              “And how does she feel about Costia being in your life again?”

              “She thought it meant we were over but I let her know that wasn’t the case. We’re good now. We talked a lot last night.”

              Anya was silent for a moment. “I still can’t believe Costia’s back. What’d she say when she found out you were seeing someone else?”

              “She was happy for me. I could sense her disappointment, though. I hate that I probably broke her heart.”

              “Well maybe she shouldn’t have-,”

              “Don’t start,” Lexa warned her friend just as there was a knock on the door. She got up to answer it, smiling when she saw Clarke.

              Clarke gave Lexa a quick kiss. “Sorry, I know you’re hanging with Anya. I can’t find my favorite pair of jeans and I’m about to go out with Octavia and Raven.”

              Lexa stepped aside to let Clarke in. “They’re hanging in my closet. I’ll be right back.”

              Once Lexa walked off, Clarke looked over at Anya. “Hey, how’s it going?”

              “Let’s skip the small talk,” Anya began. “Costia being back is a pretty big deal. How are you feeling about it?”

              Clarke moved to sit down beside Anya. “Nervous, but there was a lot of talking last night and I’m trying to be more optimistic about the whole thing. Costia made it through a lot. I’m glad for her.”

              “Word is that you and Lexa have exchanged those three letter words,” Anya said. “She doesn’t use that word freely so I don’t have to tell you how much it’ll hurt her if you mess things up.”

              Clarke knew that Anya was just being protective and she respected that. “I don’t either. You don’t need to worry, Anya. I’m in this.”

              Lexa returned to the living room with Clarke’s jeans. “Where are you three off to tonight?”

              Clarke stood from the couch and accepted her jeans from Lexa. “A bar for girls’ night out. I’ll call you when I get back so I can come over.”

              Anya grinned. “I’m spending the night. I don’t want to hear you two going at it.”

              Clarke grinned. “Awesome. Perfect time to test out just how quiet we can be.”

              Anya rolled her eyes. “Sex fiends.”

              Clarke winked at Lexa before kissing her on the cheek. “Have a goodnight, you two.”

              “I’ll walk you out,” Lexa said.

              “She literally lives right across from you,” Anya pointed out.

              “What can I say? I’m chivalrous.”

              “Whatever. You two are just going to make-out outside the door.”

              Lexa grinned as she left the apartment with Clarke. “She wasn’t wrong,” she said before kissing Clarke.

              Clarke hummed into the kiss, allowing it for a few minutes before pulling away. “I’ve got to finish getting ready.” She kissed Lexa again. “Have fun with Anya,” she said before disappearing inside her apartment.

             

 

 

 

Days later…

              Clarke was cuddled on the couch with Lexa as the brunette read a medical book and she played a game on her phone. They had been sitting in a comfortable silence for an hour now both satisfied with just being near each other. After a few more minutes, Lexa closed her book and looked beside her at Clarke. “So I was thinking.”

              “Yeah?” Clarke kept her attention on the game she was playing.

              “I’ve never spent the night at your place,” Lexa informed her.

              “That’s because I have two roommates and you have none,” Clarke said, simply.

              “I know but I kind of want to spend the night at your place,” Lexa said. “We’re always over here. And my pillow smells like you, which is nice to sleep to when I’m alone. Maybe you’d like that.”

              Clarke stopped playing her game to grin at Lexa. “If Monty could hear you now, he’d be less afraid of you.”

              Lexa narrowed her eyes at the blonde. “Shut up.”

              Clarke leaned over to kiss her. “You can sleepover tonight. And maybe if you can stay quiet, we can fool around.”

              “Thank god,” Lexa said, overdramatically. “We haven’t had sex in two days.”

              Clarke laughed. “Are you feeling deprived?”

              “I am,” Lexa confirmed. “You’ve spoiled me.”

              Clarke took the book Lexa was still holding and placed it on the coffee table before straddling the woman’s thighs. She pressed several kisses to Lexa’s jaw before nipping at it gently. Lexa slid her hands up Clarke’s shirt and rubbed up and down her sides. Clarke leaned in for a kiss that lasted several long minutes before she pulled away abruptly and moved to sit back down beside Lexa. “Let me finish this game. I’ve made it to level thirty. I’m on a roll.”

              Lexa looked at the blonde in disbelief. “I hate you.”

              Clarke grinned as she stared at her phone. “That’s not the kind of thing someone who wants to get laid says.”

              Lexa leaned over and kissed Clarke on the cheek. “Okay, I take it back.” Lexa watched as Clarke played her game, smiling when the blonde would scrunch her face up in concentration. After a few minutes, Lexa brushed her fingers through Clarke’s hair. “Hey, Clarke.”

              “Hm?”

              “We’re okay, right?”

              Clarke frowned as she looked at Lexa. “Of course, why wouldn’t we be?”

              “I’m just checking,” Lexa, replied. “We didn’t really go into deep conversation about Costia and I wanted to make sure that-,”

              “I’m not internally freaking out about the whole thing?” Clarke finished for her.

              “Well… yeah,” Lexa nodded. “Your track record with sharing your feelings isn’t exactly the greatest. It’s been a few days and you’ve had time to process so if you want to talk about it, we can.”

              Clarke smiled, touched that Lexa would check back with her about the situation instead of assuming she would get over it. “You’re seriously the perfect girlfriend. I’m going to need you to mess up sometimes so I don’t feel so inadequate.”

              Lexa grinned. “You have your moments.”

              Clarke laughed. “You’re an ass. And I’m doing okay with it.”

              “So you’d be okay if I had lunch with her tomorrow?” Lexa asked. “She called today. I haven’t given her an answer yet.”

              “Of course I’m fine with that,” Clarke said. “You don’t need my permission. Letting me know what’s going on is good enough for me. I trust you.”

              Lexa pulled Clarke over to her so that she was sitting on her lap. “Thank you.” She kissed the blonde on the cheek. “And I should mention that it’ll be at the hospital. It was the only time we could make work with our schedules and I really want to see her so I didn’t want to push the date back. I could introduce you… I mean, if you want to meet her.”

              “Maybe not yet,” Clarke replied, hoping Lexa would be okay with her not wanting to buddy up with Costia right away.

              “Sorry,” Lexa said. “I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable. You don’t have to meet her right now.”

              “It’s okay. We’ll just take it a step at a time,” Clarke said.     

              “Okay, we can definitely do that. How about I make us some dinner? We can bring it over to your apartment and share with Raven and Octavia.”

              “They’d love that,” Clarke replied as she got up from Lexa’s lap. “Let me run over to my place and clean up a bit. I’ll come back to help you soon.”

              “You don’t have to clean your room up for me.”

              “I’m not a slob but you’re definitely more organized than me,” Clarke admitted. “I probably have clothes all over the floor right now. It’s definitely not a room that screams, “let’s have hot sex” so I think a little cleaning is in order.”

              “If that’s what you want to do,” Lexa said.

              “I won’t be long,” Clarke promised before leaving the apartment. As she entered her place, she saw Octavia practicing sutures on a banana while she watched TV with Raven. “Hey, guys. Lexa’s making us dinner.”

              “I love your girlfriend,” Raven replied. “She’s the best thing to ever happen to my stomach.”

              Clarke smiled. “And she’s spending the night. I hope that’s cool.”

              “Of course it is,” Octavia replied as she looked up from the banana. “But just out of curiosity- what’s wrong with her place?”

              “Nothing,” Clarke replied. “She just wants to switch things up. We’re always at her place. Also,” Clarke moved further towards the living room. “Lexa mentioned that she would be having lunch with Costia tomorrow… at the hospital.”

              Octavia quirked a brow as she looked up at Clarke. “How do we feel about this?”

              “Mostly fine, but I can’t help but think Costia probably hates me,” Clarke admitted. “I don’t want to meet her because if we don’t get along, Lexa might be forced to choose between us.”

              “And she’ll choose you,” Raven said.

              “I know,” Clarke replied, confidently. “But I don’t want her to have to make that choice. It’ll hurt her to lose Costia again. I think I’m just going to stay clear for now.”

              “But you won’t be able to for long,” Octavia pointed out. “Especially if they plan on being friends. You’ll be crossing paths sooner than you think.” Clarke knew Octavia was right, but that wouldn’t stop her from avoiding Costia for as long as she could.

             

 

             


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

 

              Raven and Octavia were sitting in the cafeteria as they not so subtly watched Lexa and Costia a few tables away.

              "She seems nice enough," Octavia replied as she picked at her food.

              Raven scoffed. "I don't care how nice she seems. She better not make any moves on Lexa.” She watched as Costia smiled at something Lexa had said. “Do you think she’s plotting to win Lexa back?”

              Octavia watched Lexa interacting with her ex for a moment before responding. “I think she knows that door has closed. She just wants her friend back.”

              “That better be all she wants,” Raven said. “Clarke’s finally happy in a relationship. I don’t want anything ruining that.”

              “Lexa is all about Clarke,” Octavia pointed out. “Even if Costia wanted to get back with her, she’s not interested.” Octavia saw Lexa look at her phone and say something to Costia as she stood up. Costia nodded her understanding and Lexa hurried out of the cafeteria. “Should we go introduce ourselves?”

              Raven shook her head. “That’d be weird. What would we say? ‘Hey, our best friend is banging your ex. Nice to meet you?’ It’ll be awkward.”

              “Well yeah, if you say that,” Octavia said. “She’s leaving anyway. I’m sure we’ll meet her at some point.”

              Costia exited the cafeteria and made her way to the elevator. When the doors slid open, she stepped on and pressed the button for the floor she wanted to be on. As the doors began to close, someone quickly slipped on and let out a breath.

              Clarke turned her head to look at who she had gotten onto the elevator with and her eyes widened slightly at the sight of Costia.

              “Sorry,” Costia said as Clarke stared at her like a deer caught in headlights. “I can catch the next one.”

              Clarke came to her senses as Costia moved to get off. “No, stay. Please. Um…yeah, this is totally fine.”

              Costia bit her bottom lip as she stood silently on the other side of the elevator. Just as they reached her floor, she quickly spoke. “I love Lexa.”

              Clarke stood up straighter and braced herself for this conversation she didn’t want to have. “So do I.”

              “I know… and I’m not here to cause any problems between you two. She’s told me a lot about you. You make her really happy and that’s all that matters to me.” Costia stepped off the elevator but turned around when she heard Clarke speaking to her.

              “I hope you plan on keeping in touch with Lexa.” Clarke had stepped off the elevator as well. “Her social life could use some work is all.”

              Costia smiled sincerely. “Thank you.”

              Clarke returned the smile before heading down the hall to the ER. She was glad that had gone a lot smoother than she had expected it to. As she neared the ER, she saw Lexa’s mother enter the hospital. Clarke rolled her eyes and reluctantly approached the woman. “Doctor Woods, this is a surprise. Lexa’s in a long surgery. Actually, she’ll probably be busy for the rest of the year.”

              Ava forced a smile. “I hope you make a better doctor than you do a comedian. And I’m not here to see Alexandria. I’m here to speak to you.”

              “As honored as I am for the visit, I’ve got work to do,” Clarke replied.

              “This won’t take long,” Ava assured her. “May we speak in private?” Clarke held in her sigh and gestured to a secluded corner. Once away from prying eyes, Ava pulled a folded paper out of her pocket and held it out to Clarke.

              Clarke took the paper and unfolded it and realized that it was a check made out to her. She looked back at Ava with narrowed eyes. “What is this?”

              “A business arrangement. If you end things with my daughter, she’ll be more likely to return to DC and carryout the plans her father and I have for her. Being with you is only clouding her better judgement.”

              Clarke looked at the woman in disbelief. “I’m not leaving Lexa and you should be embarrassed that you’re stooping this low. Why won’t you let your daughter be happy?”

              “We have high expectations for Alexandria. Take the money and find someone else.”

              “You can’t buy me off,” Clarke spat.

              “This is the only time I’ll make this offer. I can ruin you, Doctor Griffin. Make the right choice or your career will suffer the consequences.”

              “Mom?”

              Clarke quickly shoved the check into the pocket of her lab coat at the sound of Lexa’s voice. She didn’t want the brunette to know just how shady her parents were.

              Lexa stopped next to Clarke and looked between the two. “Everything okay over here?”

              “Yes,” Clarke replied. “Your mother was just leaving. Right, Doctor Woods?”

              Ava pulled sunglasses out of her purse and slipped them on before turning to walk away without a word. Lexa frowned as she looked at Clarke. “What was that about?”

              “Your mother being… well, her usual self,” Clarke replied. “I seriously can’t stand her.”

              “Are you okay?” Lexa asked, worriedly. “Did she say something to upset you? I’ll talk to her.”

              Clarke kissed Lexa to calm her. “I’m fine. She just wanted to see you but I ran interference.”

              Lexa smiled. “Thank you, but you don’t have to deal with her. I can handle my mother.”

              “I know you can but she’s such a bitch. I enjoy pissing her off,” Clarke stated. “I have to go but I’ll see you tonight.”

 

 

 

              Raven snatched the check from Clarke’s hand and looked it over. “Holy shit. Can’t you just take the check and stay with Lexa?”

              “Raven,” Clarke chided.

              “What?” Raven asked, innocently. “She’s the idiot who wrote it. No reason for you not to cash in on her stupidity.”

              Clarke took the check back and dropped it into the drawer of her nightstand. “I don’t even want to tell Lexa. But I was thinking and what if Costia was offered a deal like this?”

              “That’d be fucked up,” Raven stated. “Maybe you should talk to Costia first. Make sure you have all the facts, you know?”

              “Or I can just let it go and forget it ever happened,” Clarke added.

              Raven shrugged. “That’s up to you, but didn’t you say Ava threatened to ruin you? It might not go away if you ignore it.”

              Clarke groaned. “I really dislike Lexa’s parents.”

              “Hey, bitches,” Octavia entered Clarke’s room and collapsed onto her bed. “What are we talking about?”    

              “Lexa’s mother is trying to pay Clarke off to leave Lexa,” Raven explained. “It’s all very soap drama.”

              “Damn, what a bitch,” Octavia stated. “What’d you do?” She asked Clarke.

              “I refused her offer but I still have the check. I’m contemplating telling Lexa but I don’t know if it’ll be a good idea. I’m a little worried Ava might actually follow through and do something to discredit me as a doctor.”

              Octavia’s eyes widened. “What if Costia left because she was paid off? That’d be so messed up.”

              “Our thoughts exactly,” Clarke sighed.

              “You can’t let her scare you out of your relationship,” Octavia added. “She could be all talk.”

              “Here’s hoping,” Clarke said as she got up from her bed. “Lexa’s waiting for me. I should get going.” She picked up her phone from the nightstand. “I’ll see you two in the morning.”

              “Good luck with whatever you decide,” Octavia added. “My two cents— I’d want to know.”

              Clarke knew she should tell Lexa but for now, she would wait until she was able to speak to Costia about the situation.

             

 

 

              Lexa opened the front door when she heard Clarke knock and smiled as she pulled the woman in for a kiss. “How was your day?”

              “Tiring,” Clarke replied as she entered the house and moved into the living room to sit down with Lexa. “How about yours?”

              “Not bad.” Lexa put an arm around Clarke’s shoulders and pulled her in closer. “I went up to the peds floor and wound up having to play toy soldiers for a bit.”

              Clarke smiled. “The kids up there adore you. Let me know the next time you visit them. I’ll join you.”

              “Sure thing,” Lexa replied as she reached for Clarke’s sketchpad that was resting on her coffee table. She handed it to the blonde and picked up her book. “The weather is supposed to be awful tomorrow. I have a feeling we’ll be busy. Want to turn in early?”

              Clarke opened her sketchpad and turned it to her unfinished picture of the forest. “That actually sounds amazing… but after sex.”

              Lexa laughed. “You know just the right things to say to turn me on,” she joked as she opened her book.

              Clarke smirked as she kept her attention on her sketch. “Whatever, you’re always ready to go.”

              “I can’t deny that,” Lexa admitted.

              The two focused on doing their own thing for the next hour until Clarke got bored and set her sketchpad aside. She glanced over at Lexa, who was focused on reading. She leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to the brunette’s neck before placing another below her ear. She nipped at Lexa’s ear gently before taking the book from her girlfriend and setting it down.

              Lexa said nothing as Clarke moved to straddle her thighs. She simply moved her hands up Clarke’s shirt as the blonde leaned down to kiss her. A few minutes passed before Clarke slipped her hand down the front of Lexa’s sweatpants. Lexa moaned at the pressure and broke away from the kiss to drop her head on the back of the couch. “Fuck,” she gasped out.

              Clarke began to nip and suck on Lexa’s pulse point as she continued to rub the brunette into a frenzy. She kissed a path but to Lexa’s lips and nipped at her bottom lip before kissing her again. Clarke pressed harder into Lexa and Lexa’s hips bucked to meet her fingers.

              “Yes,” Lexa hissed out. “Right there. Don’t stop.”

              Clarke made sure to keep the steady rhythm she had going and watched in awe as Lexa came undone for her. She kept her thumb on Lexa’s clit, lightly grazing over it as the brunette came down from her high.

              Lexa gripped Clarke by the wrist and pulled her hand out of her sweatpants before lifting Clarke up, causing the blonde to squeal in surprise. Lexa chuckled as she placed Clarke down on the couch and made quick work of removing her underwear and jeans. Clarke didn’t even have time to think before Lexa’s head was between her legs.

              “Ohmy- fuck,” Clarke moaned out as Lexa’s tongue lashed over her clit. She threaded her fingers through Lexa’s hair as she rested her head on the back of the couch and enjoyed what her girlfriend was doing to her. She felt her pleasure reaching its peak sooner than she wanted it to and tried to shift away from Lexa’s mouth. “Lexa, ease up. I don’t want to come yet.”

              Lexa pulled her mouth away but began to rub her thumb over Clarke. “I can make you come more than once,” she winked before latching her lips over Clarke’s clit.

              Clarke’s jaw fell open as her orgasm hit her and she pushed Lexa’s head further against her as she rode it out. Her first orgasm hadn’t ended when she felt her second creeping up on her. “Holy shit,” Clarke whispered out as she felt intense pleasure rushing through her.

              Lexa placed her hand on Clarke’s stomach to stop her hips from bucking up as she continued her relentless assault with her tongue.

              “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Clarke released Lexa’s hair and placed her hand on the edge of the couch, squeezing it hard as she came again.

              Lexa pressed kisses against Clarke’s thighs as the blonde sat deflated on the couch, twitching from time to time as her orgasm faded.

              “You’re amazing,” Clarke said, her voice husky and filled with satisfaction.

              Lexa smiled and moved up to press a kiss to Clarke’s lips. After a few minutes, they made their way to the bedroom where Clarke cuddled up to Lexa. “I love you,” she said, tiredly.              

              Lexa pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I love you, too.”

              Clarke wasn’t sure what Ava Woods had in store for her but she definitely wasn’t willing to lose Lexa. She would just have to deal with the woman if the need arose.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

It had been a few days since Clarke had been visited by Ava and she had assumed the woman was just trying to scare her but then she had gotten a call saying her attendance was no longer required for a medical conference she was supposed to be going to the following week.

              “Maybe they really didn’t need you to come anymore,” Octavia tried as Clarke pulled on her scrub top.

              Clarke closed her locker and looked at Octavia. “It’s Ava. I know it is. Jokes on her, though, because I didn’t really want to go.”

              “Have you mentioned this whole thing to Lexa?” Octavia asked, curiously. “Because she could stop Ava from doing anything else.”

              Clarke sighed. “I just want to talk to Costia and I haven’t had the chance because the two haven’t met up since that lunch a few days ago. If Costia did accept the pay-off, I want to be the one to break it to Lexa and if she didn’t, then I won’t have any reason to bring it up. I’ll just deal with Ava on my own.”

              “If she did accept the offer, could you really blame her?” Octavia asked. “Her medical bills were probably horrendous. Ava knew what she was doing with that offer. It’d be hard for any ailing person to turn down. I don’t know why she thought it would work on you. You don’t need the money. I mean, it’s a nice chunk of change but still.”

              Clarke sighed. “It’s the exact amount it would take to pay off my student loans. I don’t know how she found that out but Ava Woods is obviously capable of doing some sketchy things to get what she wants.” Clarke’s phone beeped and she quickly picked it up from the bench. “Gotta run.” She grabbed her lab coat. “We’ll talk later,” she said before running out of the locker room.

             

 

              Later that day, Clarke entered an on-call room and smiled when she saw that Lexa was already there taking a nap. She closed the door softly and crawled into the bed beside her girlfriend. Her smile widened when Lexa snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “Long day?”

              “Mmhm,” Lexa replied, tiredly. “You?”

              “Yeah, lots of traumas today. Idiotic traumas that could’ve been avoided. People are stupid.”

              Lexa chuckled and placed a kiss to the back of Clarke’s neck. “You were gone this morning when I got up.”

              “I had to be in earlier than you. I didn’t want to wake you.”

              “Okay, but you’ve also been semi-distant the last few days,” Lexa pointed out. “If I did something wrong, I’d like to know so I can fix it.”

              Clarke had been distant but that was only because she was busy worrying about Ava and how to approach Costia about the situation. “You haven’t done anything.”

              “Okay, do you want to talk about whatever’s bothering you?” Lexa asked. “I know something is. I can read you, Clarke.”

              Clarke knew there was no point denying something was wrong. “I’m not ready yet, but we’ll talk about it soon.”

              Lexa pressed another soothing kiss to the back of Clarke’s neck. “Okay.”

              “Have you spoken to Costia lately?” Clarke asked, conversationally.

              “Yesterday,” Lexa replied. “I checked in on her to see how she was doing.”

              “No plans to hangout?” Clarke asked. “We should have her over for dinner. Octavia and Raven can join us to make it less awkward.”

              “Really? Just the other day you said you weren’t ready to meet her,” Lexa pointed out.

              “Well you know what they say,” Clarke began. “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

              Lexa poked Clarke in the side. “She’s not someone you have to worry about.”

              “I know. I’m kidding,” Clarke assured her. “I’ll admit to still being slightly paranoid that you’ll leave me for her but that’s just me and my issues. I trust you not to hurt me. I won’t keep you from your friend.”

              “This coming from the woman who still gets huffy when Harper says anything to me,” Lexa said, amused.

              Clarke rolled her eyes. “That’s different. Harper looks at you like she wants to devour you.”

              Lexa placed a kiss below Clarke’s ear. “Thank you for being so understanding. We’ll hold off on dinner for now because I know that’s just you being nice. I know you’re not ready for that step yet, but thank you for being supportive. It means a lot to me.”

              Clarke turned so she could look at her girlfriend and brought her hand up to trace her thumb over Lexa’s bottom lip before kissing her. “Can I admit something else?” Lexa nodded and waited for Clarke to continue. “Being with you still scares me. I didn’t know I could feel _this_ much. It’s… overwhelming sometimes.”

              “Overwhelming as in I should expect you to freak out on me again sometime soon or…?”

              Clarke shook her head. “I’m not going anywhere. I just wanted you to know that feeling this way is something that I’m still getting used to.”

              “I guess it’s my turn to confess something,” Lexa said as she linked her fingers with Clarke’s before bringing their intertwined hands to rest against her chest. “I’ve been in love before but it was never like this. It scares me sometimes, too, but I’m very excited for our future together.”

              Clarke kissed Lexa before moving so that she was lying on top of the brunette. “You’re kind of perfect, you know that?” She asked as she rested her head on Lexa’s chest.

              Lexa trailed her fingers through Clarke’s hair. “You’re kind of perfect, too, in your own special way.” Lexa laughed when Clarke nipped at her neck and they both stayed as they were, enjoying the comforting moment together before they were pulled back into work.

 

 

 

              “What are you doing?” Raven asked as Clarke opened Lexa’s locker and pulled the brunette’s personal phone from it.

              “Something I shouldn’t but I don’t know how else to contact Costia,” Clarke replied as she found the woman’s number in Lexa’s contacts and typed it into her own phone.

              “This is all very bad girlfriend-ing, Clarke,” Raven stated. “You should just tell Lexa that her mother is a colossal bitch and tried to pay you off. Ava obviously has friends in high places. Finding out your student loan debt and booting you from a medical conference probably didn’t even take her much effort. Who knows what she’s capable of? What if she gets your medical license taken away or something?”

              Clarke put Lexa’s phone back in her locker and closed it before sitting down next to Raven. “You’re right, but I don’t want Lexa to get hurt. After I talk to Costia, I’ll figure out what I’m going to do.”

              “Sooner rather than later,” Raven warned.

 

 

              After her shift, Clarke had called Costia, telling her she had something important to talk to her about. She had told Lexa she had been pulled into a surgery and once Lexa left with Octavia and Raven, Clarke made her way to Costia’s apartment.

              Taking a deep breath, Clarke knocked on Costia’s door and only had to wait a few seconds before it was opened. “Hi,” Clarke greeted her. “Thanks for meeting with me.”

              Costia stepped aside to let the blonde in. “Of course. You made it sound pretty urgent.”

              Clarke entered the apartment and turned to face Costia. “I’m going to get straight to the point. I’m sure you’ve met Ava Woods before.”

              Costia sighed. “Being around that woman took more years off my life than being sick did.”

              Clarke nodded her understanding. “She’s definitely a lot to handle. She, uh… she gave me a check the other day. She thought it would persuade me to leave Lexa and make Lexa vulnerable enough to be talked into leaving Ark Hospital.”

              Costia looked at Clarke, realization playing over her features. “You want to know if I received the same offer?”

              “Yes.”

              “I did,” Costia admitted. “Ava offered me enough money to pay off my medical bills and to seek treatment elsewhere.”

              “And I get that it was a very tempting offer,” Clarke began. “I’m not here to judge you. I just want to have all my information together. If you took the offer, Lexa has the right to know.”

              “I understand,” Costia replied. “Give me one moment.” Clarke watched Costia walk off and within a minute, she was back with a folded piece of paper. She held it out to Clarke and the blonde took it.

              “The check,” Clarke said as she unfolded it. “You never deposited it.”

              “I wanted to do what was right for Lexa,” Costia stated. “My deteriorating health was hard on her and I didn’t want to put her through that so I left, but I left with my dignity.” Costia gestured to the check. “I had a feeling Ava might tell Lexa I accepted the check and took off so I kept it as proof that I never betrayed her like that.”

              “Why didn’t you ever tell her about it?” Clarke asked.

              “There was no point,” Costia explained. “I was still leaving and Lexa already knows how manipulative her mother is.”

              Clarke sighed and looked at the woman apologetically. “I’m sorry I thought-,”

              Costia held up her hand to stop her. “I get it. I would’ve thought the same thing.”

              “Thank you. I better get going.” Clarke held the check back out to Costia but the brunette shook her head.

              “Maybe you can return it to Ava for me.”

              Clarke smiled. “I can definitely do that.”

             

 

 

              Lexa was playing scrabble with Octavia and Raven while they drank beer and waited for Clarke to arrive home. She was enjoying her time with them even if Raven was a sore loser.

              “That’s not a word,” Raven huffed.

              “It is,” Lexa assured her.

              “Where? In your own made up dictionary?” Raven pouted. “We’re playing a movie trivia game next.”

              Lexa playfully glared at the woman. “See, now that’s not fair.”

              “You two are like children,” Octavia state.

              “We need better alcohol,” Raven added as she looked at Lexa. “Go get Clarke’s stash that she doesn’t think we know about.”

              “Why do I have to go?” Lexa asked.

              “Because if she gets upset, you can win her over with sex,” Raven explained.

              Lexa shook her head and stood up to head into Clarke’s room. She headed to the dresser and began to look through the drawers but wasn’t having any luck. When she got to the last drawer, she froze at the sight of a strap-on. She smirked and made a mental note to bring that up to Clarke when she arrived. Maybe game night would be ending early in lieu of some private fun. She closed the drawer and sighed as she thought about where Clarke would hide the stash Raven claimed the blonde had. She checked under the bed and found several old sketch pads, which she told herself she would return to later. She looked at the nightstand and thought maybe Clarke’s stash was in the form of tiny sample bottles. She pulled the drawer open to find nothing but as she went to close it something caught her eye.

             

 

              Clarke entered her apartment and saw Raven and Octavia rearranging letters on the scrabble board. “That’s cheating.”

              “Whatever,” Raven replied. “Your girlfriend’s been making up words.”

              Clarke smiled. Hearing Lexa referred to as her girlfriend still made her heart flutter. “And where is Lexa?”

              “Your room looking for your stash,” Raven said, looking up from the board. “I told her not to do it.”

              Clarke’s eyes widened and she quickly made her way to her room but stopped at the doorway when she saw Lexa looking at the check. “Okay, so obviously I have some explaining to do.”

              Lexa looked up from the check to see Clarke looking at her nervously. “Why’d my mother write you a check?”

              Clarke closed her room door and set her purse down on the floor before walking towards Lexa. “She wants me to break-up with you because she thinks us being together is keeping you at Ark Hospital, which is ruining all the fun plans she has in store for you.” Clarke wanted to keep things light in hopes that Lexa wouldn’t get too upset with her.

              “And you kept it,” Lexa stated, not accusingly.

              “Yes, but only because I was going to show it to Jaha when I told him what was going on. And we’ll talk about your snooping later,” Clarke said. “I went to visit Costia tonight. I wanted to know if Ava had offered her a similar deal.”

              Lexa’s frown deepened. “Did she?”

              “Yes, but Costia didn’t accept.” Clarke pulled the check out of her pocket and handed it to Lexa. “She left for the reasons she told you. The money had nothing to do with it. Your mother is seriously a control freak. She already found a way to get me replaced on that stupid medical conference and who knows what else she has planned. She told me she’d ruin me so I’m a little worried about my medical career and-,”

              “This check is dated for almost a week ago,” Lexa stated.

              “I know, I know,” Clarke said. “I’m sorry. I was going to tell you.”

              “Before or after you let my mother ruin your career?”

              “I was going to enlist the help of Jaha and my mom if I needed to,” Clarke explained. “You’ve had to deal with shit from your parents all your life. I didn’t want to add this to it if I didn’t need to.”

              “Clarke,” Lexa sighed as she set the checks down on the bed. “You can’t keep stuff like this from me. I want to be able to help you. That’s what a relationship is—us supporting each other. I can appreciate why you didn’t want to tell me but I can handle my parents.”

              “So you’re not upset?” Clarke asked, hopeful.

              “I’m a little upset,” Lexa admitted. “But I forgive you. I’ll take care of things tomorrow and you won’t have to worry about my mother trying to ruin your life.” Lexa placed a kiss on Clarke’s forehead. “I can’t believe my mother would stoop so low.”

              “She didn’t account for the amazing sex we have,” Clarke joked to lighten the mood. “No amount of money would make me give that up.”

              Lexa laughed. “Since we’re on the topic, I did come across a very interesting item in your drawer.”

              Clarke’s cheeks began to redden, knowing exactly what Lexa was talking about. “That was a gag gift from Octavia and Raven. I’ve never even used it.”

              “Well, maybe we can change that one of these days,” Lexa grinned.

              Clarke bit her bottom lip at the thought of that. “I wouldn’t say no.”

              “Good to know,” Lexa said. “And just out of curiosity, how’d you get in contact with Costia?”

              Clarke scratched the top of her head. “Um, I might’ve snuck into your locker and got her number from your phone.”

              Lexa scoffed. “And you want to talk to me about my snooping?”

              Clarke kissed Lexa, knowing the brunette wasn’t really upset. “I’ll make it up to you in a bunch of amazing ways. Want to rejoin Octavia and Raven?”

              “Yeah, Raven’s whining whenever I beat her will take my mind off of things.”

              Clarke hugged the brunette. “Are you going to be okay?”

              “Yeah, I’m just not looking forward to having to deal with my mother tomorrow and I’ll want to talk to Costia about this but I’ll be fine.”

              Clarke moved to the empty space beside her dresser and pulled up the piece of carpet that she cut out perfectly months ago. Lexa watched as the blonde removed the wooden floorboard and pulled out an expensive bottle of rum. “I think tonight calls for the good stuff.”

              Lexa laughed. “You’re full of surprises, Clarke.” Clarke winked at her before heading out to join their friends in the living room.  


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

 

              Lexa entered the building of the private practice that her parents owned. She made her way straight to her mother’s office, ignoring the woman at the front desk who tried to get her to stop. She opened her mother’s office door without knocking and saw the woman on the phone. She moved further into the office and stood at the desk as Ava looked at her, continuing her conversation.

              The assistant rushed into the office but Ava waved her away as she ended her call. “Alexandria,” she greeted as she set her phone down. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

              Lexa pulled the two checks from her back pocket and tossed them onto her mother’s desk. “Clarke and Costia send their regards.”

              Ava looked at the checks for a moment before looking up at Lexa. “They’re both foolish to have declined these offers.”

              “You’re unbelievable,” Lexa said, upset that her mother didn’t even seem to feel bad about what she had tried to do. “Stay away from Clarke. Your threats won’t do any good. I don’t want anything to do with you or dad. You won’t ever be happy with me unless I let you control my future and that’s just not going to happen anymore. I’m living my life for me now.”

              Vincent entered the office and was surprised to see Lexa. “I didn’t believe Cindy when she said you stormed into your mother’s office. It’s been months since you’ve stopped by here.”

              Lexa looked at her father, anger obvious from her expression. She snatched up the checks from the desk and held them out to her father. “Did you know about these?”

              Vincent took the checks and read over them both before looking at his wife in disbelief. He looked back at his daughter and sighed. “No, I wasn’t aware of either of these incidences. I’m sure your mother only had the best of intentions when she-,”

              Lexa laughed, cutting him off. “You’re always defending her, even when you think she’s wrong. Well congratulations, you no longer have a daughter.”

              Vincent held up both his hands. “Okay, let’s calm down. You don’t need to be overdramatic. All we ever wanted for you-,”

              “I’m not listening to this,” Lexa interrupted. “I’ve been hearing you say the same thing since I was a child. All you two care about is me not making you look bad. Well guess what? You do a good job of that all on your own.”

              Ava stood from her desk and looked at her daughter. “You can’t come in here and attack us like this for wanting the best for you.”

              Lexa was done with the conversation and didn’t want to argue. “I have to head into work. My shift starts soon.” Lexa exited the office without another word and smiled as she made her way towards the elevator. Telling off her parents was always a rewarding feeling.

 

 

 

              Lexa was about to enter the hospital when she saw Jake Griffin walking out of the building. “Mr. Griffin,” she greeted him. “Were you stopping by for a visit?”

              Jake smiled at the doctor. “Hey, Lexa. I was actually stopping by to get checked out but it’s busy. I can wait. There’s a guy in there with a knife through his hand. I think he needs more help than me.”

              Lexa frowned. “Do Clarke and Abby know you’re here?”

              Jake shook his head. “I don’t want to worry them over nothing. Anyway, I’ll see you later. You should stop by with Clarke this weekend.”

              “Let me look you over before you go.” Lexa could tell Jake was having trouble breathing. “How long have you been having trouble breathing?”

              “About an hour ago,” Jake replied. “Really, though. I’m fine. I’m probably just getting sick.”

              “It won’t take long,” Lexa said. “I’m not going to take no for an answer.”

              Jake sighed. “Alright, but I don’t want Clarke and Abby worrying over nothing.” Lexa nodded her understanding and gestured for Jake to follow her inside.

              “How long have you been feeling unwell?” Lexa asked.

              “A few days. I’ve had nosebleeds and this shortness of breath sometimes feels like I’m suffocating.”

              “And you didn’t tell your wife about this?” Lexa asked in disbelief. “She _is_ a doctor.”

              “She would’ve worried too much,” Jake said. “I really don’t think it’s anything.”

              “It never hurts to get these things checked out,” Lexa said as they entered a room. “Can you lay down for me?”

              Jake laid down and Lexa wheeled over a cardiac ultrasound machine. “Can you unbutton your shirt for me? I’m just going to take a look at what’s going on with your heart,” she asked as she pulled gloves on. Once she prepped him, Lea spread gel on Jake’s chest before using the machine. As she looked at the screen of the ultrasound, Lexa cursed under her breath.

              “Well that can’t be good,” Jake said.

              Lexa put the paddle down and looked at Jake. “Mr. Griffin, I need to go get your wife and daughter. I’ll be right back.”

              “Wait, Lexa—Doctor Woods. What’s going on?”

              Lexa removed her gloves and place a hand on top of Jake’s. “You have a tear in your ascending aortic wall. Blood is pouring through the layers of your aorta. Without treatment, this condition will cause a rupture.”

              Jake placed a hand to this chest. “When do I have to have this surgery?”

              “Right now. It’s a complicated surgery but I can do it. You need this. I can get Clarke and Abby in here so you can see them,” Lexa said, leaving no room for argument.

              “Okay,” Jake said, knowing he didn’t have much of a choice. “I’ll-,” Jake’s head tilted to the side and his eyes drooped shut.

              “Damn it.” Lexa rushed to the door. “Get me a crash cart!”

 

 

 

              Monty entered the operating room where Lexa and Octavia were performing surgery on Jake. He held a mask up over his nose and mouth before speaking. “You paged me?”

              Lexa kept her eyes on what she was doing as she spoke to Monty. “I need you to do something for me. It is a very sensitive situation.”

              “What do you need me to do?” Monty asked.

              “I have Clarke’s father on this table,” Lexa said. “I’m going to tell you what happened and you’re going to tell every detail of it to Clarke and Abby so they know what’s going on.” Lexa told him everything from when she first saw Jake outside up until now. “And don’t let them come in here.”

              “Yes, Doctor Woods.” Monty turned to leave but stopped to ask a question. “Is he going to be okay?” Lexa swallowed and glanced up at Octavia, who knew things weren’t looking good right now. “Doctor Woods, what do I tell them?”

              “I don’t have an answer yet,” Lexa replied.

              Monty slipped out of the room and went to the surgical board. He saw that Clarke and Abby were both done with their respective surgeries and had none scheduled for the next hour. He had them both paged to an empty hospital room and Clarke was the one to arrive first.

              Clarke frowned when she saw the empty room. “Monty, you paged me?”

              “I did,” Monty replied, trying to keep his nerves intact. “We’re just going to wait for your mother.”

              Clarke furrowed her brows. “What’s going on?”

              Abby entered the room and looked from Monty to Clarke. “Hey, I was paged to this room.”  
              Monty moved to close the door and turned to face the women. “I have something I need to tell you. Jake…” Abby and Clarke tensed at hearing the name. “He… wasn’t feeling well so he came to the hospital. He changed his mind and was leaving but ran into Lexa who made him get checked out.”

              “Where’s my dad?” Clarke asked.

              “During a cardiac ultrasound-,”

              “Monty,” Clarke cut him off. “Where is my dad?”

              “Doctor Woods had to rush him in for emergency surgery. She diagnosed him with an ascending aortic aneurysm.”

              Abby was silent as she processed the information. “Is Doctor Woods doing a modified Bentall procedure?” She asked, trying to keep herself together.

              “She is,” Monty confirmed. “Mr. Griffin was placed under deep hypothermia and circulatory arrest in which-,”

              “I know,” Abby sighed as she ran her hands over her face.

              “Well I don’t,” Clarke replied as tears welled in her eyes. “What is happening?”

              “Your father’s heart and head were packed in ice,” Abby said, gently. “It’s to stop the brain and blood flow.”

              “That part of the operation is done,” Monty assured them. “Doctor Woods is two-hours in to the ten-hour surgery.”

              “Two hours?” Clarke asked. “Why are we now just being told?”

              “You were both in surgery. I, myself, didn’t know about it until a few minutes ago.”

              “Which operating room is he in?” Abby asked, placing a hand on Clarke’s shoulder.

              “O.R. three but Doctor Woods does not want you in the room,” Monty informed them as he stepped aside to open the door.

              “Thank you, Doctor Green,” Clarke said as she exited the room and made her way down the hall.

              Abby followed after her. “Clarke-,”

              “She should’ve told us,” Clarke said, angrily. “Anything could’ve happened in those two hours.”

              “Clarke,” Abby tried to calm her down. “There was nothing we could’ve done. We just have to wait.”

              When they reached the room, Clarke slipped on a surgical mask and entered the O.R. “Doctor Woods,” Clarke said, obviously not pleased. “How is the surgery going?”

              “You’re not supposed to be in here,” Lexa replied. “I’m sorry, Clarke, but you need to wait outside.”

              “I’m staying,” Clarke said. “You should have had me paged two hours ago.”

              “Doctor Griffin, I cannot perform this surgery with you hovering over me,” Lexa snapped. “Get out of my O.R. I will send Doctor Blake out to keep you updated every hour.”

              Clarke reluctantly left the room and slid down the wall to sit beside her mother on the floor. “Why didn’t you go in there with me?”

              “Lexa is an amazing doctor,” Abby stated. “She knows what she is doing. I’m not a doctor right now in this situation.”

              “I saw him a few days ago,” Clarke began as she finally let her tears fall. “I didn’t notice anything.”

              Abby put an arm over Clarke’s shoulders and pulled her close. “He said he was getting a cold and I didn’t think much of it. You know how your father is. He doesn’t like to worry us. This isn’t your fault. This is no one’s fault.”

Ten minutes went by of the two sitting in silence until Clarke became anxious and stood up. “I can’t just wait. I need to do something. Lexa kicked me out of the room so I can’t even watch or scrub in.”

              “Don’t be upset with her,” Abby said as she stood up. “We’re too close to this. You know that. We should both get back to work. Your father would hate for us to sit around waiting when we could be saving lives.”

             

 

 

Eight hours later…

              The heart monitor was flat lining and Octavia was looking at it with wide eyes before she looked at Lexa. “Doctor Woods,” she began, softly.

              “Just give him a second,” Lexa said, her heart threatening to beat through her chest. “Come on, Jake,” she whispered.

              “Should we call it?” another doctor asked.

              “Shut up,” Lexa snapped. “We’re not calling anything.” She placed her hand into Jake’s chest and began to massage his heart gently. The monitor began to beep and Lexa pulled her hand away, relieved. She closed and opened both her hands several times to stop them from cramping. “Forceps,” she said as she held her hand out.

              “Doctor Woods,” Octavia began, knowing Lexa was probably drained from the surgery. “I will close him up and I will monitor him.”

              “Thank you,” Lexa said. “Let me know when he wakes up. I’m going to go find Clarke and Abby.” She exited the hospital room and tossed her gloves and surgical gown before making her way to Abby first. She found the woman filling out paperwork and waited for her to hand the clipboard back to the nurse before she approached her. “Doctor Griffin.” Abby stood up straighter and waited for Lexa to continue. “Jake’s going to be moved to recovery soon. He’s not out of the woods yet but I have a good feeling.”

              “Thank you, Lexa,” Abby said, happy to know Jake had made it through the surgery. “I’m going to go see him. Have you told Clarke?”

              “You were my first stop,” Lexa answered. “And I’m sorry if I upset you by not informing you right away of-,”

              Abby held up her hand to stop Lexa. She then pulled the brunette into a tight hug. “Things would have gone a lot worse if you hadn’t convinced Jake to get checked out. I can’t thank you enough, Lexa. I really can’t.” She pulled away from the hug and wiped the tears from her eyes. “And Clarke’s not upset with you either. You should talk to her.”

              “I will,” Lexa assured the woman. “I’ll go see her right now.”

              Abby reached for Lexa’s hand and squeezed it lightly in thanks before walking away to go see her husband. Lexa made her way to the ER but couldn’t find Clarke. “Bellamy,” she approached the man. “Do you know where Clarke is?”

              “Peds,” Bellamy answered. “How’s her father?”

              “In recovery,” Lexa answered. “We’ll know more on how he’s doing when he wakes up.”

              Once Lexa made it onto the peds floor, she walked to the small play area where she found Clarke sitting on the floor as two kids played with Lego blocks.

              “Look, Doctor Griffin,” a redheaded girl beamed. She had a breathing tube in her nose, which was attached to a tank that rested beside her. “I made a house!”

              Clarke smiled as she admired the house. “Amazing job, Laura. I would totally live there.”

              The little girl giggled. “You’d have to be like this tall.” She showed Clarke the height she would have to be using her thumb and pointer finger.

              “Yeah, I guess I would have to be that tiny.” Clarke saw Lexa approaching and stood up, worry taking over her features.

              “I’m going to have to borrow Doctor Griffin,” Lexa said.

              “Doctor Woods!” a boy exclaimed. “Play with us! I can build you a house, too! A big one! You and Doctor Griffin can share it!”

              Lexa smiled at his enthusiasm. “As great as that sounds, I have a lot of work to do. I’ll have to come back up tomorrow, okay?” The boy pouted and Lexa chuckled. “None of that. I promise I’ll be by tomorrow.”

              “Okay,” the boy sighed. “Tomorrow’s coloring, though.”

              “Sounds like a plan.”

              “Thanks for letting me hangout with you guys,” Clarke said, before walking away with Lexa. “How is he?” She asked as they neared the elevator.

              “Hanging in there,” Lexa replied as she pressed the down button. “Your mother is with him now. He’ll more than likely sleep through the night.” The elevator doors slid open and Lexa let Clarke on before she stepped in. “I wanted to apologize for kicking you out of the O.R. the way I did.”

              Clarke shook her head. “I was out of line. I’m sorry.”

              Lexa pulled Clarke to her for a hug. “I’m not upset.”

              Clarke hugged the brunette back, resting her head on Lexa’s chest for a moment, enjoying the warmth the proximity brought her. “Thank you for saving my dad.”

              “You don’t have to thank me for that,” Lexa replied.

              Clarke pulled out of the hug and kissed Lexa on the cheek. “I’m probably going to spend the night in an on-call room.”

              The doors to the elevator opened and they both stepped off. “I’ll bring you and your mom dinner,” Lexa said as she looked at her watch.

              “We can grab something from the cafeteria.”

              “But that’s not as appetizing.” Lexa stopped walking. “I’ll be back in a few.”

              “Wait, how’d things with your parents go?” Clarke asked.

              “Hopefully I’ll never have to deal with them again,” Lexa said. “But we’ll talk about that later. Go see your dad.”

              Clarke kissed Lexa. “Go home. You’ve had a long day. I’ll see you in the morning.”

              “Are you sure?” Lexa asked. “I could-,”

              “Lexa, you’ve done enough. Go rest.”     

              “Okay,” Lexa conceded. “Call me if you need anything.”

That night when Lexa tossed and turned for three hours as she tried to fall asleep, she realized that sleeping without Clarke wasn’t something she liked to do. She wondered briefly if moving in together would be a good idea so soon, but decided to push those thoughts to the back of her head until they had been together a bit longer.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

 

              The next day, Lexa entered Jake’s hospital room and smiled when she saw him lying in bed  talking to Clarke, Abby, Raven and Octavia. He had an oxygen mask looped across his face but she was glad to see him up. “Hey, it’s good to see you awake.”

              Jake pulled the mask from his face. “You saved my life. You are definitely a shoo-in for future daughter-in-law.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes as a blush creeped up her neck. “Dad,” she chided as she put the mask back into place.

              “He’s right,” Abby cut in. “You should hang on to this one.”

              Clarke groaned. “You two are embarrassing.”

              “They’re not wrong,” Lexa smirked. “You should definitely never let me go. I’m pretty amazing.”

              “You’re just as ridiculous as them.” Clarke looked at her watch and sighed. “I’m sorry, Dad. I have to go. Raven and I have a surgery.”

              Jake pulled the mask from his face once again. “I’m perfectly fine. Go save lives. I’ll be here until my doctor lets me go.”

              “Which won’t be today,” Lexa stated, knowing the man didn’t want to be stuck in the hospital.

              Raven patted Jake on the shoulder. “I’ll stop by later, Mr. G.”

              “Sneak me a burger,” Jake pleaded.

              Raven laughed. “Not happening. I’m sure Doctor Woods has a whole new diet regimen for you.”

              Abby’s pager went off and she kissed her husband on the cheek. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Try not to be the most miserable patient ever,” she said before rushing out.

              Clarke hugged her father gently before leaving with Raven to scrub in for their surgery.

              “And then there were two.” Jake looked from Octavia to Lexa. “So what happens now?”

              “I’ll have to run some tests.”

              “Done,” Octavia said as she tapped away on her tablet. “I knew you’d be in early so I came in even earlier to run a bunch of tests. Everything seems to have gone well during surgery.” She held out the tablet for Lexa to read over the results of each test. “I believe the condition was caused by a genetic defect but Jake does have a history of high blood pressure. I went ahead and prescribed Coumadin, along with a few other drugs, which are listed…” she gestured to the tablet, “on there.”

              Lexa smiled, impressed by Octavia’s efforts. “Thank you, Doctor Blake.” She read through the files before handing it back to Octavia. “What happens now is that we’ll need to changeup your diet. You’ll have physical therapy to rebuild your stamina and muscle strength.”

              Jake pulled the mask down so he could speak clearly. “And when can I leave?”

              Lexa secured the oxygen mask back onto his face. “We’ll take that day by day. And in case you missed it the first time, it really is great to see you up. It really would have sucked if I had killed you. You’re a good man.”

              Jake removed the mask from his face and rested it against his chest. “Thank you for insisting on the ultrasound. I wouldn’t be here without you.” He looked at Octavia. “You both saved my life and I’ll never forget it.”

              “We were just doing our jobs,” Lexa said. “I’m just glad I was in that parking lot when I was. Guess I can say my parents’ obnoxious ways have come in handy for something.” She placed the mask back on Jake’s face. “Get some rest. I’ll be back around soon.”

              “See you later, Mr. Griffin,” Octavia said before exiting the room with Lexa.

              Lexa looked over at Octavia as they walked down the hall. “Feeling like a solo surgery today, Doctor Blake?”

              “Uh, yes!” Octavia said, ecstatically.

              “Good.” Lexa shoved her hands into her pockets and turned to look at Octavia. “I’ll be in the room but you’ll pretend I’m not there to help you. Got it?”

              Octavia nodded. “Got it. Thank you, Doctor Woods.”

              “You’ve earned it. I’m proud of your progress,” Lexa said as they continued down the hall.

Two months later…

              Clarke was in the corner of Lexa’s living room painting on an easel that Lexa had bought her while the brunette took a shower when she heard the brunette’s phone buzz. She picked it up from the coffee table and saw that it was a text message from Lexa’s father so she headed into the bathroom. “Lexa, your father just messaged you.”

              “What does it say?” Lexa asked.

              Clarke opened the message and read it. “Alexandria, I would like to meet up with you for coffee at some time this week. I hope to hear from you soon.”

              Lexa sighed as she shut off the shower. “I’m really not interested. Is that horrible of me?”

              Clarke pulled the curtains back and handed Lexa a towel. “I don’t blame you at all.”

              Lexa took the towel as she stepped out of the shower. “What would you do?”

              “If they were my parents, I would’ve cut them out of my life years ago.” Clarke set the phone down and moved to sit on the counter as Lexa dried herself off. “You’re not obligated to put up with them, Lexa.”

              “I know,” Lexa said as she wrapped the towel around her body. She ran a hand through her wet hair and moved to stand in front of Clarke. “How’s your dad doing with the new exercise coach I set him up with?”

              “A lot better,” Clarke said as she ran her hands up and down Lexa’s arms. “He said the new guy is a lot less intense.” Clarke leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Lexa’s neck.

              “So I had a question,” Lexa began as Clarke continued pressing her lips along her neck. “You never leave anything over here.”

              Clarke pulled away to look at Lexa. “Is that a bad thing?”

              Lexa shrugged. “I don’t know. Is it like a commitment-phobe thing? If you leave a toothbrush here, will that be too much?”

              Clarke sighed and gently pushed Lexa back so she could get off the counter. “I hope you know we were about to have mind-blowing sex before you killed the mood.”

              Lexa followed Clarke out of the bathroom. “You haven’t answered my question.”

              “I live right across the hall,” Clarke stated as she plopped down onto the couch in the living room. “I don’t need to leave anything here.”

              Lexa opened her mouth but then closed it. That did make sense. She huffed and went into her bedroom to put clothes on. Once dressed in gym shorts and a tank top, Lexa returned to the living room where Clarke had resumed painting. “I’m an ass.”

              “A bit of one, yeah,” Clarke agreed as she continued working.

              “I’m sorry,” Lexa said. “I didn’t mean to push or… spring that on you out of nowhere. I suck at relationships just as much as you do.”

              Clarke laughed lightly at that as she set down her paintbrush. “The blind leading the blind.” She got up and moved to Lexa. “I love you. Being in a committed relationship with you doesn’t freak me out as much as potentially screwing it up does. I don’t want to rush into anything. Our relationship is too important to me.”

              Lexa bit at her lower lip, guiltily. “I could have presented my question to you in a more mature manner. I guess I need to work on my own communication skills.”

              Clarke shook her head. “Then you wouldn’t be you.” She kissed Lexa gently. “I’m going to finish my painting. We can do something in a bit.”

              “Did I totally kill my chances at that mind-blowing sex?” Lexa asked with a smirk.

              Clarke grinned as she went to sit back down. “No, I think sex can definitely be had later. Maybe not of the mind-blowing variety. You’ve got to earn that,” she winked at the brunette.

              Lexa chuckled and moved to Clarke to place a kiss on her head. “I love you, too, by the way.” Clarke smiled as she went back to painting and Lexa grabbed a medical book up from the coffee table before lying down on the couch.

 

 

              Lexa placed kisses on Clarke’s shoulder as the blonde laid on her stomach, recovering from the paces Lexa was putting her through. “Your stamina is ridiculous.”

              “Again?” Lexa asked as she trailed her hand over Clarke’s lower back.

              Clarke moved so that she was straddling Lexa. “I’m spent,” she said as she moved her hand down between their bodies, “but I have enough energy to-,” Lexa moaned as Clarke entered her. Clarke leaned down to kiss Lexa greedily as she continued to thrust into her.

              Lexa scrapped her nails down Clarke’s back as she arched into her touch. “Clarke,” she panted. The brunette’s moans fueled Clarke’s thirst for her, making Clarke thrust harder and faster. Clarke moved down Lexa’s body and pressed her tongue into her causing Lexa to moan loudly. Clarke enjoyed the curses escaping Lexa’s lips and she latched her lips over her clit to pull more sounds from her. “Yes,” Lexa moaned as she felt her orgasm fast approaching. Pleasure consumed her and Clarke watched on as if she had a goddess beneath her.

              Lexa slumped onto the bed and let out a breath while Clarke pressed kisses up her stomach. She ran her fingers through Clarke’s hair before tugging gently in order to get Clarke to move further up. Clarke moved up Lexa’s body and kissed her hard on the lips. The two kissed hungrily and Clarke smiled into it as Lexa moved her hand lower. “Not happening.” She nipped at Lexa’s bottom lip before moving to rest beside her. “Go to sleep.” She placed an arm over Lexa’s waist and kissed her neck.

              “I’m not tired.”

              “I will kill you,” Clarke mumbled into the back of her neck.

              “Goodnight,” Lexa said, amused. Within a few minutes, Clarke’s breathing evened out and Lexa used the sound to lull herself to sleep.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Months later…

              Clarke was sitting in the hospital’s locker room texting on her phone while Lexa changed out of her scrubs. Clarke smiled at her phone and Lexa quirked a brow. “You’ve been glued to your phone the last few days.”

              Clarke glanced up at Lexa for a moment. “Yeah, I’m having an affair,” she deadpanned.

              “Hm, how’s that going?” Lexa asked, unfazed as she slipped her shoes on.

              “It’s a lot of work, actually,” Clarke answered as she tapped away on her phone. “I might have to break it off.”

              “I’m just relieved it’s an affair,” Lexa replied as she grabbed her jacket. “I was afraid you were planning the birthday party I told you I didn’t want.”

              Clarke stood up and shoved her phone into her pocket. “I don’t know why you’re so against a party. It’ll be fun.”

              “It’s just another day, Clarke,” Lexa said as she linked her fingers with her girlfriend’s and made her way out of the locker room with the blonde.

              “It’s not just another day,” Clarke protested. “It’s _your_ day and I want to celebrate it with friends, cake, alcohol and a lot of sex.”

              Lexa smirked. “Well I’m definitely down for the sex part of that.”

              “Of course you are.” Clarke’s phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket to read the message from Anya.

 

_Anya[8:15pm]: Are you inviting the non-dead ex-girlfriend?_

_Clarke[8:16pm]: I don’t think Lexa would appreciate you referring to Costia as that. And no, I wasn’t planning on it. Should I? Is it a bitch move not to? I just thought it would be a bad idea._

“Clarke,” Lexa sighed as they reached her car. “Did you hear anything I just said?”

              “No,” Clarke admitted as she continued to text Anya. “Hold on.”

              Lexa opened the passenger door for Clarke, who smiled and kissed Lexa before getting into the car. Once she was in the vehicle as well, Lexa looked over at Clarke. “Tell Anya I said hi.”

              Clarke frowned as she glanced at Lexa. “How’d you know I was texting Anya?”

              Lexa smirked. “I guessed and you just confirmed. No party, Clarke. I mean it.”

              Clarke rolled her eyes as Lexa started the car. “You’re no fun and I’m not listening to you. You’re having a party. It’ll be low-key.” Clarke returned her attention to her phone.

 

_Clarke[8:20pm]: Why is Lexa so against celebrating her birthday?_

_Anya[8:20pm]: Haven’t you guessed it? Shitty parents. Let’s see…_

_Anya[8:22pm]: From constantly forgetting her birthday to telling her birthdays are just another day when she would get upset about it… I think Lexa just doesn’t care anymore._

_Clarke[8:23pm]: We’re changing that. But I better stop texting before Lexa throws a fit. I’ll call you tomorrow._

Clarke set her phone in her lap and looked at her girlfriend. “I’m very happy that you were born and I would like to acknowledge your birthday by having a party with our friends, who are also pleased with you being on this Earth.”

              Lexa sighed as she kept her eyes on the road. “Will you self-combust if you can’t throw me a party?”

              “I will,” Clarke replied. “It’ll be pretty bad.”

              “Okay, I’ll cooperate if it makes you happy,” Lexa relented.

              Clarke beamed. “Thank you. And I talked to my dad earlier. He said that you were going to help him repaint the house.”

              “Yeah, he said he’s wanted to do it for a while,” Lexa said. “I offered to help. And I told your mom I would go see a movie with her that night, too. You’re on-call and she said your dad talks during movies.” Lexa noticed Clarke smiling and quirked a brow. “What?”

              “Nothing,” Clarke replied, still smiling.

              Lexa was silent for a bit as she drove, but then a thought hit her. “I’m totally hijacking your parents, aren’t I?”

              “What? No,” Clarke assured her. “I love that you spend time with them. _They_ love that you spend time with them. I think it’s cute.” Lexa’s own father hadn’t contacted her again since she ignored his text message and her mother had never bothered to open a line of communication. “I think they like you better anyway,” Clarke joked.

              Lexa smiled as she pulled into the parking lot of their apartment building. They made their way up to their floor and each went into their own apartments with the promise to see each other in about an hour or so.

              “Hey, Raven,” Clarke said as her friend laid on the couch watching TV. “How was your day?”

              “Pretty awesome,” Raven replied. “That clinical trial I told you about is going amazingly.”

              “That’s great, Rey,” Clarke said, happy for her friend. “I see medical awards coming your way.”

              “Thanks,” Raven smiled. “And speaking of coming. No Lexa tonight?”

              “You’re a perv,” Clarke replied. “And she’s at home. I’m going to take a shower. I’ll be right back out.”

              After her shower, Clarke went back to the living room to spend time with Raven and Octavia, who had arrived while she was showering. The three ended up talking and having a beer before Clarke made her way over to Lexa’s apartment.

             

 

 

              Clarke was lying in Lexa’s bed the next morning, reluctant to get out of bed and start her day when she had Lexa spooning her. She heard a knock at the front door and gently shook Lexa. “Hey, are you expecting anyone?” Lexa grumbled and pulled Clarke tighter into her body as she continued to sleep. Clarke sighed as she pulled out of Lexa’s arms. “If I was waking you for sex, you’d get up.”

              “A hundred percent,” Lexa answered, tiredly.

              Clarke couldn’t help but laugh lightly as she pulled on pajama bottoms and a t-shirt before making her way to the front door. She looked through the peephole and was surprised to see Lexa’s father. She let out an irritated breath and stepped back at the door. It was definitely too early to have to deal with Vincent Woods. She contemplated ignoring the man until he went away but ultimately decided that she wanted to find out what he wanted.

              Clarke opened the door and stepped outside, closing the door softly. “Lexa’s asleep.”

              “I wanted to catch her before she left for work,” Vincent said.

              “I’ll let her know you stopped by.”

              Vincent sighed. “I just want to see her.”

              “Okay, but that won’t be right now.” Clarke was surprised when the man didn’t argue.

              Vincent held up an envelope for Clarke to take and she could tell it was a birthday card from the size. She took the card and watched the man turn and walk away silently. She rolled her eyes and moved to catch up to him. “Hey.” When Vincent turned around, Clarke fixed him with a hard stare. “If you’re doing this—trying to be in Lexa’s life again, then you need to do better this time around. I won’t let you and your wife continue to push your life goals onto Lexa. She’s her own person and she deserves parents who want her to be happy.”

              Vincent opened his mouth to respond but then closed it for a moment and took a breath before trying again. “I just want to make things right.”

Clarke nodded curtly before going back into the apartment and heading into the bedroom where Lexa was still in bed. “Hey,” Clarke said as she got onto the bed. “That was your father at the door.”

              Lexa sat up and leaned against the headboard, holding the bedsheet over her naked chest. “What did he want?”

              Clarke held up the envelope. “He wanted to see you but I wouldn’t let him in so he just left this.”

              “Thank you,” Lexa said, relieved that she wouldn’t have to deal with the man.

              “Figured you wouldn’t want to see him.” Clarke handed Lexa the envelope but the brunette shook her head.

              “You can toss it,” Lexa said as she got up from the bed, not bothering to cover up.

              Clarke’s eyes roamed Lexa’s body but she quickly pulled herself from her dirty thoughts so she could remain focused on the matter at hand. “You’re not curious at all?”

              “Maybe a little. You can open it,” Lexa said as she began to get dressed.

              Clarke opened the envelope and read the card silently to herself before summarizing it for Lexa. “He wishes you a happy birthday and says that he’s sorry your relationship has become what it has. He wants you in his life and hopes you’ll contact him soon.” Clarke set the card and envelope onto the nightstand. “What do you think?”

              “Effort noted but I meant it when I said I was done. I have no interest in fixing anything.” Lexa made her way towards the bathroom and Clarke got up from the bed to lean in the doorway as she watched Lexa getting ready.

              “I get that and I won’t push you to reconcile with your parents but you should really think about it,” Clarke said. “Believe it or not, I didn’t always get along with my mother. Those teenage years were rough but look at us now.”

              Lexa looked at Clarke through her reflection in the mirror. “Something tells me your mother wasn’t quite like either of my parents.”

              “Not exactly, but I’m glad we worked things out. Again, I get if you don’t want to bother. I totally support you in whatever you decide.”

              “Thank you,” Lexa said before brushing her teeth and then washing her face. When she noticed Clarke watching her do her daily routine, she quirked a brow. “You’re watching me.”

              Clarke smiled. “You’re beautiful. I can’t help it.”

              Lexa returned the smile and kissed Clarke before walking out of the bathroom. “You should start getting ready. I’ll make us coffee.”

              Clarke heard her phone buzz on the nightstand and moved over to pick it up.

 

_Anya[7:31am]:  I’m surprising Lexa tonight with a visit and I’m spending the night with her so get that birthday sex out of your systems in an on-call room._

Clarke laughed as she typed out a response.

_Clarke[7:33pm]: It’s not birthday sex if it’s not on her birthday._

_Anya[7:33pm]: Early birthday sex, then. Just don’t plan on getting laid tonight because I’ll be preoccupying your girlfriend’s time._

_Clarke[7:34pm]: Thanks for the warning. I’ll be sure to put good use to an on-call room._

              Clarke was smiling in amusement as she got ready for her day. Lexa’s parents weren’t the best but the brunette definitely had an amazing best friend. 

 


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

              Lexa approached the cafeteria table where Clarke, Octavia and Raven were sitting but as soon as they noticed her, they stopped talking. Lexa grinned, knowingly as she sat down beside Clarke. “Discussing my surprise birthday party?”

              Clarke shook her head. “Not much of a surprise anymore since you figured it out.”

              “Then you can give me details about it so I know what to expect,” Lexa said.    

              “Like I said, it’s low-key. You’ll enjoy yourself,” Clarke assured her. “And if not, Octavia will definitely enjoy herself,” she stated with a smirk, earning a confused look from the younger woman. “Lexa’s friend, Lincoln,” Clarke clarified. “He’ll be at the party. I think you’ll like him. Lexa agrees.”

              Octavia sat up straighter in her chair. She knew Clarke wouldn’t steer her wrong. “I’m up for meeting someone new.”

Clarke smiled, pleased with the answer. She turned her attention to Raven but before she could speak, Raven shook her head. “Don’t try setting me up with anyone. Wick was a disaster.”

Clarke rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t the one who sent him your way. That was Bell. And speaking of Bellamy…”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Raven cut her off.

Octavia smirked at Raven’s scowl. “You two have a thing.”

“We do not. That _thing_ was like two years ago and it was just… fun.”

Clarke shrugged. “I don’t know, Raven. You two get along pretty well.”

“That doesn’t mean I want a relationship with him,” Raven grumbled. “Why the sudden interest in our personal lives anyway?”

              Clarke smiled, brightly. “Well, you two tried playing cupid with me all the time and now I’m returning the favor.”

              “Because you’re disgustingly happy now and want to spread the joy?” Raven asked, amused.

              Clarke nodded firmly. “Yes.”

              Raven scoffed. “I miss your single days.”

              Octavia reached out to playfully hit Raven on her arm. “Ignore her,” she said to Clarke.

              “Look, I’ve been kind of seeing someone,” Raven admitted. “It’s been… nice. I haven’t said anything because we both agreed we should just wait to see how serious we are.”

              “Do we know them?” Clarke asked. “How long have you been dating? I’m offended I’m just now hearing about this.”

              “Same,” Octavia huffed. “Who is it?”

              Raven’s pager went off and she looked overjoyed at the sound. “Thank god,” she said before leaving the table.

              Lexa shook her head in amusement before looking at her watch. “We have a surgery to get to, Blake.” Lexa looked over at Clarke. “I’m going to come find you later. I want to talk to you about something.”

              Clarke furrowed her brows. “Is everything okay?”

              “Yeah, I just wanted to run something by you.” Lexa kissed Clarke on the cheek before getting up.

              “Later, Clarke,” Octavia said. “See you tonight.”

              Clarke spent the rest of her lunch, wondering what Lexa could want to talk to her about—only drawing her thoughts away from it when she was paged to the ER.  

Lexa and Clarke were in an on-call room, both naked and in bed while Lexa moved against Clarke. Clarke dug her nails into Lexa’s shoulders as she tried to stay quiet. Short, quick gasps were escaping Lexa as she neared her orgasm and when she finally reached her peak, Clarke was right behind her.

              “We were supposed to be talking,” Lexa breathed out again Clarke’s neck.

              Clarke smirked. “That was your early birthday sex. Maybe if you’re lucky, we can squeeze in another round later.”

              Lexa kissed Clarke and minutes passed before Clarke reluctantly ended it. “We should get dressed.” Lexa kissed Clarke again before getting up from the bed and reaching for her clothes. “So, what’d you want to talk about?” Clarke asked as she also began to get dressed.

              “Costia,” Lexa began. “She texted me today. She wants to meet up tomorrow. I haven’t seen her in a while and we’d only do something in the morning so I’m free the rest of the day to enjoy whatever you have planned for me. Is that something that would be okay with you?”

              “You know I don’t have a problem with you being friends with Costia,” Clarke said as she straightened out her scrubs. “You can invite her to your birthday party if you want.”

              Lexa ran a hand through her hair. “No, I think breakfast together is good. She-,”

              “Still has feelings for you?” Clarke finished for her, thinking it would be awkward for Costia to come to the party and see her and Lexa together in their element.

              “I was going to say she likes how things are with us now,” Lexa said. “We meet up every once in a while to catch up on each other’s lives. You know, make sure we’re doing alright. I don’t know if our friendship will ever be anything more than that.”

               Clarke slipped her shoes on and sat down on the bed. “Are you okay with that?”

              Lexa sat down beside her girlfriend and smiled when Clarke reached for her hand. “I am, actually. It works for us.”

              Clarke brought Lexa’s hand up to kiss the back of her hand. “I’m glad you two are in a good place.”

              Lexa’s phone beeped and she sighed at the interruption as she picked it up from the small desk in the room. She rolled her eyes as she read the message from one of the nurses who had paged her.

              “What is it?” Clarke asked.

              “My father’s here,” Lexa replied as she stood up. “I better go deal with this.”

              “Do you want me with you?” Clarke asked.

              “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.” Lexa kissed Clarke on the cheek before standing up. “I’ll come find you later.” She made her way to the door and as she stepped out of the room, she saw Abby walking down the hall.

              “Lexa,” Abby smiled. “Ready for this weekend?”

               Lexa closed the door behind her as she smiled at the woman. “No, but I don’t have much of a choice on attending.”             

              Abby laughed lightly. “Griffins love a good birthday party. You’ll have fun. Clarke is really excited about it. Speaking of Clarke, have you seen her?”

              Lexa tensed a bit and her response came out as more of a question than a response. “No?”

              Abby smirked, knowingly, before reaching past Lexa to knock on the on-call room door. “Clarke?” The door opened slowly and Clarke stepped out feeling as if she was a teen getting caught fooling around with her girlfriend. Abby shook her head but it held no malice. “On-call rooms are for resting and the rare occasion that someone wants to study. It is not for sex.”

              Lexa blushed lightly. “We were just talking.”

              Abby gestured to the name on Lexa’s lab coat. “Really? Because your lab coat says otherwise.”

              Lexa looked down and saw that the name on the lab coat was definitely not her own. She gestured to Clarke. “She seduced me.” Clarke swatted Lexa’s upper arm and the brunette gave her a “What? It’s true” look.

              “I better get back to the ER.” Clarke took off the lab coat and handed it to Clarke. “Let me know how things go with your dad.”

              “I will,” Lexa promised as she took the coat and handed Clarke her own.

              Abby rolled her eyes at the mention of the man. “I knew that was him I saw. Do you need me to get rid of him?”

              Lexa smiled at the woman’s protectiveness. “It’s okay. I’ll speak to him. Thanks, though.”

              Lexa walked off and Abby looked at her daughter. “Your father and I have no idea what to get Lexa for her birthday.”

              “She doesn’t want anything,” Clarke said. “I’ve been asking her all week.”

              “Well did you end up getting her something anyway?” Abby asked. “Maybe I can work off of that.”

              Clarke’s cheeks began to turn red and she cleared her throat. “Um-,” Abby’s phone beeped and Clarke was relieved when the woman said she had to go. She definitely dodged an awkward moment there.

 

 

 

              Lexa found her father waiting for her in the ER and gestured for him to follow her outside. Once outside, she shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. “What are you doing here?”

              “I had a feeling that girlfriend of yours wouldn’t give you the birthday card I dropped off this morning so I decided to stop by to see you,” Vincent said.

              “You know her name is Clarke,” Lexa stated, annoyed. “And she did inform me of the card. It was nice of you to bother remembering this year.”

              Vincent sighed. “Alexan- _Lexa_ ,” he corrected himself. “I don’t want to fight with you. I don’t want to be estranged either. You’re my daughter and I want to be a part of your life. I will admit to not being a great father and I know it’s probably too late to start making up for everything, but I do want to try.”

              “Can you manage to be in my life without having any control over it?” Lexa could tell her father was sincere but that didn’t make up for everything he had put her through.

              “I’ll always have my opinions,” Vincent admitted. “But I can learn to keep them to myself. I’m sorry we took control of your future the way we did.”

              “You and mom have caused me a lot of pain throughout my years,” Lexa said. “From crushing my dreams of joining the army to controlling what hospital I would work at… even interfering with the people I was allowed to have in my life—you both controlled every aspect of my life. I wasn’t allowed to be my own person. I can’t forgive that just because you’re suddenly sorry about it.”

              “I know that,” Vincent said. “And I’m willing to work hard to fix our relationship. Your mother is, too.”

              Lexa let out a dry laugh. “Really? She hasn’t called me once.”

              “She needs a little more time,” Vincent stated. “But she will come around. Until then, that’ll give us some one-on-one time to rebuild things between us.” Lexa was silent for a moment. She had been fully prepared to never speak to either of her parents ever again. She hadn’t expected her father to try so hard to make things right. “Maybe we can do something this weekend,” he tried.

              Lexa shook her head. “I'll be busy.”

              “How about next Wednesday?” Vincent tried. “I don’t have much going on that day.”

              “I do, though,” Lexa replied. “I have plans with Clarke’s dad and then her mom later that day.”

              “You must be close with them,” Vincent said.

              “I am. They’re good people. I’ll get in touch with you soon. We can do lunch or something.” Lexa gestured behind her at the hospital building. “I better get back inside.” Lexa turned to leave but stopped when her father spoke.

              “I am proud of you. I know you think I’m not and that’s my fault. I raised you the way I was and… I’m just sorry. I hope to hear from you soon.”

              Lexa watched her father walk off before she allowed a small smile to form. She headed back inside and made her way to the ER to see if Clarke was busy. She saw the woman kneeling down as she spoke to Wes, a five-year old from the peds floor. “Hey, Wes,” she approached him. “What are you doing down here?”

              Clarke stood up as she spoke to Lexa. “We have an escape artist on our hands.”       

              The boy laughed. “I didn’t escape. Doctor Jaha let me come down.” Wes smiled up at Lexa as he held a piece of paper out to her. “Doctor Griffin told me your birthday was tomorrow. I drew you a picture.”

              Lexa looked at the drawing and smiled widely. It had her in scrubs and she had a cape on. “Buddy, this is the best birthday present ever. Thank you.”

              Wes was beaming. “Doctor Griffin said you would love it.”

              “She was right. It’s awesome.”

              Wells approached them and smiled down at Wes. “Alright, Wes. I’ve got to take you back upstairs.” Wes pouted and Wells laughed. “That doesn’t work on me anymore.” The boy looked at Lexa and then Clarke with the same pout.

              Clarke laughed. “You’re a troublemaker with that pout, you know that? I’ll bring you an extra cup of Jell-O later.” Wes perked up at hearing that and happily made his way towards the elevator with Doctor Jaha. “He is too cute,” she laughed.

              Lexa hummed her agreement as she looked at the drawing again. “Kids are the best.”

              Clarke pulled a picture out of her pocket and unfolded it to show Lexa. “He drew me something so I wouldn’t feel left out.” Lexa laughed when she saw the drawing of what looked like her and Clarke holding hands.

              “Definitely liking that one.”

              Clarke folded the drawing back up and put it in her pocket. “How’d things go with your dad?”

              “Not horrible like I was expecting,” Lexa answered. “I think there might be hope for us.”

              “And your mom?”

              Lexa shrugged. “Who knows. I’m not really worried about it.”

              “Not worried about what?” A familiar voice asked from behind Lexa.

              Lexa turned around and smiled at Anya. “My mother being in my life.”

              Anya rolled her eyes. “That woman is insane. You’re better off not having to deal with her.”

              Raven walked into the ER and smiled when she saw Anya. “Anya, hey. This is a nice surprise.”

              Anya returned the smile. “Just thought I’d kick off Lexa’s birthday celebrations early.” She looked back at Lexa. “We’re having a best friend night. I’ve already stolen your house key from your locker. I’ll leave you arkers to your life saving.” She looked at Clarke. “See you tomorrow, Clarke.” She then looked at Raven. “Always a pleasure, Reyes,” she winked.

              Anya walked off and Clarke looked at Raven with a raised brow. “What was that?”

              Raven frowned in confusion. “What was what?”

              “Always a pleasure, Reyes,” Clarke repeated Anya’s words.

              “People love seeing me,” Raven stated. “You shouldn’t be surprised. Now if you’re done reading into things, I need a consult.”

              “Okay, okay,” Clarke relented. She kissed Lexa on the cheek and began to walk backwards down the hall as she spoke to her. “I’m scrubbing in on a surgery with my mom later and it’s going to be a long one. I’ll probably have to rest in an on-call room after.” Clarke turned around and headed down the hall with Raven. Lexa laughed and made a mental note to find out when that surgery was supposed to end so she could meet up with Clarke later.

             


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

              The next morning, Lexa woke up to her phone buzzing. She felt around her nightstand for it and saw Clarke’s name on her caller ID. “Clarke,” she answered. “It’s seven in the morning.”

              “Yeah, the usual time you’re up,” Clarke stated.

              “Not when Anya kept me up all night,” Lexa whined. “I’m going back to bed.”

              “I want to give you one of your presents now,” Clarke said, huskily.

              Lexa felt herself wake up a little more at the thought of morning sex. “I might be willing to get up for a birthday present.”

              “Unlock the front door and go back to your room. Keep your eyes closed until I tell you to open them.”

              Lexa huffed. She didn’t like surprises. “Why?”

              “Do it,” Clarke ordered. “Or I’ll stay home.”

              “Fine,” Lexa drawled as she left her room. She unlocked the door and glanced at Anya, who was asleep on the couch. She made her way back to her room before speaking again. “Anya’s fast asleep on the couch so try to stay quiet coming in.”

              “I will. Are your eyes closed?” Clarke asked.

              “No,” Lexa replied.

              “Lexa,” Clarke said in a warning tone.

              “Alright, alright.” Lexa closed her eyes. “They’re closed. And just to make sure we’re on the same page about this birthday present, I am about to get sex, right? I would hate to have made the effort to get out of bed for something other than sex.”

              Lexa was slightly startled when she felt her phone being taken from her hand. She kept her eyes closed and swallowed hard. “Clarke?”

              “Keep your eyes closed,” Clarke said, quietly. She locked Lexa’s room door before removing the robe she had worn to walk across the hall. “Anyone ever tell you that you’re a sex addict?”

              Lexa chuckled. “You. But I can’t help it. I happen to find you very desirable.” Lexa felt Clarke’s breath on her neck and she shivered as the blonde’s lips lightly touched her skin. She had to force herself to keep her eyes shut. “I want to see you.”

              Clarke moved away from Lexa. “Okay, open your eyes.”

              Lexa opened her eyes and an embarrassing moan escaped her at the sight of her girlfriend. Clarke was wearing a blue teddy that complemented her eyes and she had garter belts on. She had light make-up on and her look was topped off with high heels. “Holy shit, Clarke,” Lexa said, reaching for the blonde’s hand in order to pull her closer. She bit her lower lip as she eyed the woman. She was completely awake and ready to ravish every inch of Clarke. She stood up and kissed Clarke slowly at first and then things became heated as she slid her hands up Clarke’s lingerie.

              “Wait.” Clarke pulled away and reached for a bag on the floor that Lexa hadn’t noticed before now. “There’s more to your present.”

              Lexa laughed when Clarke pulled the strap-on she had found in the blonde’s drawer months ago. They had never gotten around to using it but now was definitely an opportune time. She reached for it but Clarke pulled it away from her.

              “I’m wearing it,” Clarke informed her.

              “Absolutely not,” Lexa said. “I don’t want this thing in me. I would, however, love to use it on you.”

              Clarke pouted and Lexa nipped at her bottom lip. “Get on the bed,” she ordered as she took the toy from Clarke. Clarke saw the excitement and arousal in Lexa’s eyes and knew she was in for a really good morning. Clarke removed her heels and got onto the bed so she could watch Lexa undress and secure the strap-on around her waist.

              “You’re going to have to stay quiet,” Lexa warned. “Anya will kill us if we wake her with our sex noises.”

              Clarke grinned. “I can’t make any promises.” Lexa let out a breathy laugh as she crawled onto the bed.

 

 

              Anya’s eyes fluttered open and the first thing she registered was the moaning coming from Lexa’s room. She rolled her eyes and put her pillow over her head but she then heard an “ohgod” and more barely stifled moaning before she decided to get up. “Unbelievable,” Anya huffed as she made her way into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. “I hate you both!” She yelled as she retrieved a cup from the cabinet.

 

 

              “Wait,” Clarke gasped as Lexa thrusted into her. “Did you hear that?”

              “Ignore her.” Lexa kissed Clarke to swallow the moans that were escaping the woman.

              Clarke was still wearing her blue teddy, which was currently bunched up at her waist as Lexa had her way with her. Clarke tried to stay quiet but Lexa was just too good at what she was doing. As her orgasm rushed through her, Clarke let out several loud expletives. Lexa grunted her own release and sagged on top of Clarke as she came down from her high. Clarke glided her hand up and down the length of Lexa’s back as she caught her breath. “Happy birthday, by the way.”

              Lexa laughed. “Thank you. That was definitely a memorable present.” She pushed up on her hands and pulled out of Clarke, causing the blonde to let out a light moan.

              “I have another present for you,” Clarke said, her voice scratchy from their previous activity.

              “You didn’t have to actually get my anything, Clarke,” Lexa said as she tossed the strap-on onto the floor.

              “I didn’t get it; I made it.” Clarke reached over the side of the bed and pulled a large square-shaped present from under the bed and handed it to Lexa.

              Lexa figured Clarke had probably slid it under there when her eyes were closed earlier. “What is it?”

              Clarke rolled her eyes but a smile played at her lips. “Open it and you’ll find out.”

              Lexa gently unwrapped the present until a picture frame was revealed with a painting Clarke had created of them. The brunette was sitting on a couch reading a book while Clarke's head rested on her lap. One of Lexa's hands was resting on Clarke's hip and they both looked content. "This is beautiful, Clarke."

              "I like when we're like that—just existing together. I've never had this kind of connection with anyone before. I'm happy. I'm looking forward to our future together."

              Lexa smiled and kissed Clarke gently on the lips. "You're amazing, you know that? I'm very excited about our future together as well. I think things are very promising for us." She looked back at the painting. "I love this. It'll serve as a great reminder of how lucky I am to have you."

              Clarke smiled. "You are pretty lucky." Clarke took the painting from Lexa and set it down gently on the floor. "How about one more round before starting our day?"

              Lexa laughed as she moved on top of Clarke. "And I'm the sex addict," she said, sarcastically, before capturing Clarke's lips with her own.

 

 

              When the two finally emerged from the bedroom after a shared shower, they saw Anya, Raven and Octavia in the living room eating breakfast from a nearby café. Clarke was wearing the sweats and t-shirt she had in the drawer Lexa had cleared out for her despite the brunette trying to convince her to leave her lingerie on.  

              Anya glared at them as they neared. "I told you to get it out of your systems yesterday."

              Clarke had the decency took look a little embarrassed. "We're sorry."

              "I'm not," Lexa cut in. "It was amazing birthday sex."

              Octavia gestured to two bags on the kitchen counter. "We got you breakfast. I’m sure you need the sustenance to reenergize yourselves. And happy birthday, Lexa."

              "Yeah, happy birthday," Raven said. "Obviously it's off to a great start."

              "Thanks, guys," Lexa said as she moved to the kitchen counter.

              "So," Clarke began. "Are you seeing anyone, Anya? I'm just curious. I have someone I want to set you up with." Raven stopped mid-bite and narrowed her eyes at Clarke, who didn’t pay her any mind.

              “Well, there is someone,” Anya said, nonchalantly. “It’s been going pretty well, I think. She’s really great.” Clarke smirked as she noticed Anya steal a glance at Raven.

              Clarke grinned. “And when will you be introducing her to us?”

              “Not sure,” Anya replied. “Things are kind of great how they are now.”

              “Low-key dating?” Lexa asked as she handed Clarke her breakfast bagel.

              Anya thought it over. “Yeah, I guess you could call it that. Anyway, we should probably get ready to head to your parents place to set things up.”

              “I could just join you guys,” Lexa said. “I already know about the party.”

              Clarke shook her head. “Raven and Octavia will be keeping you busy. Besides, you have to meet up with Costia soon. I’m going to go get dressed. I won’t be long.” She placed a kiss on Lexa’s cheek before leaving the apartment.

 

 

 

              Clarke watched with a smile as Lexa and Raven laughed while looking at something on the orthopedic surgeon’s phone. Jake approached his daughter and gently nudged her with his shoulder. “Hey, keeping an eye on your girl to make sure she doesn’t flee?”

              Clarke chuckled. “No, just admiring her from afar.” Clarke let out a breath. “I really love her, Dad.”

              Jake put an arm over Clarke’s shoulders and gave her a small hug. “Is that still scary for you?”

              “I’d be lying if I said no,” Clarke admitted. “But… I’m good. _We’re_ good. I just keep waiting for something disastrous to happen because no relationship can be this easy, right? We just… flow so well together.”

              “I’m glad. I couldn’t have picked someone better for you if I tried,” Jake said.

              Lexa glanced their way and smiled when she saw Clarke looking at her. She excused herself from her conversation with Raven and made her way over to Clarke and Jake. “What trouble are you two stirring up?”

              Jake grinned. “I’m just waiting for cake.”

              “A very small piece, Jake,” Lexa said. “I’m going to cut it for you myself.”

              “Come on, it’s a birthday party. I’m supposed to have cake.”

              Clarke shook her head. “You shouldn’t be having any. I’d be grateful for a small slice if I were you.”

              Jake sighed. “I’m starting to think marrying a doctor, having a doctor daughter and a future daughter-in-law doctor isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

              Clarke playfully pushed her father. “You love us.”

              “I do.” He gestured to Abby. “I’m going to go see what your mother and Cece are up to.”

              Once her father was gone, Clarke gave Lexa a quick kiss on the lips. “Enjoying yourself?”

              “I am,” Lexa admitted. She nodded over to where Jake now stood with his wife. “You didn’t correct him when he said future daughter-in-law.”

              Clarke shrugged. “Yeah well, I’m pretty confident that it’ll be true one day.”

              “Good to know,” Lexa said, happily. She looked over at Lincoln and Octavia, who hadn’t stopped speaking since being introduced two hours ago. “Those two are hitting it off.”

              “I’ve noticed,” Clarke said as she slid an arm around Lexa’s waist as she stood beside her. “I see a double date in our near future… and possibly a triple date if Anya and Raven will admit what we already know.”

              “Maybe after a few drinks, they’ll be less careful about not being obvious,” Lexa said.

              “Guess we’ll see how that plays out a little later in the day. Raven has a bunch of drinking games she wants us to play.”

              “Oh joy,” Lexa said, sarcastically.

              “You’ll have fun,” Clarke assured her. “Oh, and how’d things with Costia go this morning?”

              Lexa smiled. “Great. She’s doing really well. She’s even dating someone.”

              Clarke smiled. “I’m happy for her. She’s been through a lot. I’m glad she’s been able to bounce back.”

              Lexa’s phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket and Clarke noticed the look of surprise that crossed her features.

              “What is it?” Clarke asked.

              “It’s my mom.” Lexa showed Clarke her phone.

_Mother[1:28pm]: Happy birthday, Alexandria. I hope you are enjoying yourself today. Your father tells me you will be spending it with Clarke and her family. Maybe soon we can have a quieter celebration. It would be nice to see you and hear what you’ve been up to._

              Clarke smiled. “That’s a decent start.”

              “I guess it is,” Lexa said, feeling surprisingly happy that her mother reached out to her. She typed out a quick response, thanking her mother and letting her know that she would be willing to see her soon to catch up.         

              “Nice surprise?” Clarke asked, trying to gauge how Lexa was feeling about her mother contacting her.

              Lexa nodded. “Yeah, actually. I wasn’t expecting it.” Lexa put an arm over Clarke’s shoulders and pulled her in to place a kiss on her temple. “And thanks for throwing me this party… and just being here for me in general. You’ve been really great—dealing with my family drama and the whole Costia thing.”

              “It hasn’t been any trouble, Lexa,” Clarke assured her. “And I should be thanking you for sticking with me through my relationship issues.”

              Lexa smirked. “It keeps things interesting. Besides, I love you so you’re kind of stuck with me.”

              Clarke leaned forward and kissed Lexa. It was meant to be chaste but the brunette deepened it and Clarke was reluctant to end it.

              “I’m separating you two,” Anya said as she approached the two, forcing them to break apart. “You see enough of each other. Mingle now, make-out later.”

              “Fine,” Clarke smirked. “You and Raven seem cozy.”

              “We’re friends,” Anya said, casually.

              “Just friends?” Clarke asked.

              Anya rolled her eyes. “Go back to making-out,” she huffed before walking away.

              “Yeah, there’s no way they’re not together,” Lexa said.

              “Come on. “ Clarke linked her fingers with Lexa’s. “Let’s annoy Raven until she admits it.” Lexa smiled as she allowed Clarke to pull her over to their friend.

             

              It took an hour before Raven confessed that she and Anya were, in fact, a thing.

 

 

Several months later...

 

              Clarke entered her apartment and found a folded piece of paper with her name on it. She picked it up and unfolded it, frowning as she read it. She went to Raven's room first, knowing the orthopedic surgeon probably had something to do with it. She knocked on the door and it was opened seconds later. Clarke held up the paper. "You're kicking me out?"

              Raven leaned against the doorway. "We are, yes."

              Clarke quirked a brow. "Why?"

              "Because it's time. You basically live at Lexa's already. Nothing's changing. You'll just be across the hall now. You haven't slept in your own bed in god knows how long. And we've promised your room to Bellamy. He's looking for a new place."

              "What if Lexa doesn't want me to move in with her?" Clarke asked.

              "Don't be dense. She wants you to live with her. If you're not ready, you can keep your room but Octavia and I think you're afraid to change things up so you've been avoiding it."

              Clarke looked at Raven suspiciously. "Has Lexa brought this up to you?"

              "She asked if we thought you'd freak-out if she approached you about it. We told her no. We're we wrong?"

              Clarke shook her head. "No, you weren't."

              Raven smiled. "Then I guess Bellamy's got a new apartment.”

              Clarke smiled. “I guess he does. Thanks, Raven.” She headed out of her apartment and used the key Lexa had given her to open the brunette’s apartment door.

              “Clarke, is that you?” Lexa asked from her bedroom.

              “Yeah,” Clarke answered as she headed into Lexa’s room.

              “Did you forget something?” Lexa asked as she was getting dressed.

              “Raven and Octavia are kicking me out,” Clarke stated. “Something about I’m never there and they already offered my room to Bellamy.”

              Lexa stopped getting ready and turned to face her girlfriend. “Is that something you’re okay with?”

              “Getting kicked out?” Clarke asked with a frown.

              “No, um, moving,” Lexa said, feeling a bit nervous. “Uh… moving in here… with me.” At Clarke’s blank expression, Lexa began to backtrack. “I mean, you don’t have to. I don’t-I’m…”

              Clarke laughed and moved forward to kiss Lexa. “Breathe, Lexa. I’m messing with you. I was kind of thinking that, yeah, I could move in with you.”

              Lexa was beaming. “Yeah?”

              Clarke nodded. “They’re right. I’m never home anyway. I basically live here already. Might as well make it official.”

              Lexa pulled Clarke in for a kiss. “Then it’s official.”

              “I’ll want to change a few things,” Clarke added. “I want a brighter place.”

              Lexa furrowed her brows. “Are you saying my place is dull?”

              “Eh, it’s a little gloomy,” Clarke admitted.

              “It’s a mature adult apartment,” Lexa said, folding her arms across her chest.

              “It screams “doom and gloom”, babe,” Clarke said. “It’s okay, though. We can totally spruce it up a bit.”

              Lexa frowned. “It’s a sophisticated apartment. You know, I think our relationship is currently in danger.”

              “Shut up.” Clarke placed her arms around Lexa’s neck. A trip to Ikea will do wonders for our place.”       

              Lexa grinned as she placed her hands on Clarke’s waist. “Our place. I like the sound of that. I love you.”

              “Yeah? What do you love about me?” Clarke asked, clearly in a playful mood.

              Lexa pulled her girlfriend closer. “Everything. I love everything you are, Clarke.” Clarke kissed Lexa and the two smiled into it as they thought about how lucky they were to have found each other.


End file.
